Keion!
by Dango-san
Summary: Let's sing, let's play, let's have fun. Features a new generation of the Light Music Club; all the main characters are OCs. This is a fic that's more "in tune" with the show's mood.
1. Episode 1: Reforming!

Keion!

Episode 1: Reforming!

* * *

><p>Houkago Tea Time<p>

"U & I"

_Just by having you at my side, I always had courage  
>I want to be together with you forever<br>I want to tell you how I feel_

_On sunny days, too, on rainy days, too_  
><em>You were by my side<em>  
><em>When I close my eyes, your smile is shining<em>

It wasn't a feeling I could describe with words. About four years ago in that concert, there was a girl who clapped eagerly with everybody else. Smiling and cheering in admiration. The five girls playing their instruments with loving familiarity in their last cultural festival. The tight bond they shared and their bright smiles.

Even until now, I can't describe that wonderful feeling.

But whatever it was, I want to recreate it. I want to make people feel the way I did while watching them.

* * *

><p>"Tei-chaaan. Tei-chaaaaan. Tei-chaaaaaaan."<p>

Tei's eyes opened slowly, and the first thing she saw was a camera at her face. "Nono?" She yawned.

Nono giggled. "You're so cute when you're sleeping." Waving her hand at her, Tei put her head down again, making a mess of her straw-colored hair. "Hey! Don't go back to sleep!"

"What do you waaant?" Tei asked sleepily, her head still in her arms. Having had the cliché fortune of getting a seat next to the window, the spring wind suddenly blew a gust at her, and she shivered, going upright in an instant. Nono smiled.

"So, have you joined a club?"

Tei looked at her sleepily. "Nooope."

"Come on, it's high school! You should at least do something!"

"But I'm too laaaazyy," Tei sang as she dropped her head to her desk again. Nono frowned at her. Tei looked at her, smiled, lifted her head up and put it on a hand. "Well? What about you, Nonochi? Have you joined a club?"

Nono beamed at her. "The Photography Club!"

"No way! You actually joined something this time!"

"That's mean! I'm not as lazy as you! This is just the first time I found something I like!"

"Why not some baking club, then? You make great cakes, after all."

"Ehhh, I already do plenty of that at home. Er, wait. This isn't about me. You should go join a club."

Tei pouted then looked away. "Fine, fine. I'm going to check out the music clubs later then."

"Will they be fine with you? I mean, you do nothing but sleep all the time."

"Do you want me to join a club or not?"

* * *

><p>"Excuse me, I came to obse—it's empty." Curious, Sara entered the empty room of the Light Music Club. It was rather dusty, having been unused for the whole of spring break. Apart from that, though, there was a faint smell of tea that seemed to be stuck to the room. There was nothing much of worth apart from the odd-looking statue of a frog—wait, are those expensive-looking teacups in that cabinet?<p>

After a few moments, Sara went down to the faculty to ask about the Light Music Club.

Ms. Yamanaka, a teacher well-known for her beauty and elegance, enlightened her to the situation. "It's on the verge of disbandment."

"Disbandment?" Sara echoed. "Did all the previous members graduate?"

"Yes. Unless four members join before the end of April, it will be disbanded." Ms. Yamanaka chuckled softly. "This feels kind of nostalgic."

"Sensei," a soft voice called out from behind Sara.

"Oh, Cecil!" Sara smiled when she saw the blonde girl.

"Sara-san," Cecil greeted with a slight bow.

"What is it, Cecil-san?" Ms. Yamanaka asked.

"Oh, I came to ask about the Light Music Club."

Sara smiled. "What a coincidence. I just asked about that."

Ms. Yamanaka: "It's on the verge of disbandment."

Sara: "We need four members so that it won't happen. Do you want to join, Cecil?"

Cecil blinked in confusion before she replied. "Oh, uhm. Sure. Yes, I'd like to join."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Eh? Are you going to reform the club?"

Sara nodded. "Yes! Only two more members to go!"

* * *

><p>Aira poked the blunt end of her pen to her cheek, deep in thought. Should she join the Jazz Club? Her love for jazz said so, but the Judo Club also called out to her fondness of martial arts. She sighed, leaned her chair back then faced up at the ceiling. Well, if Sara's face wasn't blocking it.<p>

"Aira."

"What?"

"Leaning back on your chair is dangerous."

"Oh, leave me alone." Aira straightened herself up, faced Sara and saw Cecil standing next to Sara.

"Have you decided on your clubs yet?"

Aira looked at her questioningly. "Hmm, not yet."

Sara and Cecil smiled at each other then, and nodded. "Do you want to join the Light Music Club?" Cecil asked.

"Ehh, I was thinking more about either Jazz or Judo."

"Come on," Sara said, "the club's going to get disbanded if we don't get four members by the end of the month."

Aira: "Woah, it's odd for you to force someone to do something."

Sara: "I do it to you all the time, what's odd about it?"

Aira: "What brought this on, anyway?"

Sara: "Well, it's high school. I haven't joined any clubs before, so I'd like to do it for high school, at least. Yuka's been pretty reliable lately, and since she's insisting that I join a club, I might as well join one."

Aira looked at her childhood friend thoughtfully. Sara was the model big sister: she was kind, gentle, cool, and mature. She wasn't just any model big sister, though; she was the big sister to five siblings. Because of all the time she spends taking care of the family, she never got to join any clubs in her previous years. Her wanting to join one this time… well, Aira didn't want to disappoint her.

Aira: "So, why the Light Music Club?"

Sara: "Remember that cultural festival we went to once?"

Aira: "Ah! The one with the magic tricks?"

Sara: "Not that one! The band!"

Aira: "One, two, three, four!"

Sara punched a fist into the air. "Rice!"

Cecil laughed. It was so unusual seeing Sara act childish.

Aira smiled. "So, what are you playing?"

"Nothing." Then both Aira and Cecil stared at her. "W-what?"

"What?" both Aira and Cecil asked.

"I don't play any instruments, so I'll be the vocalist." Sara shrugged. "I don't have the money to buy instruments, anyway."

Aira sighed. Then she smiled, "Fine then, I'll join." Sara smiled widely. "So. If Cecil's playing guitar and I'm playing bass… then I guess we need drums?"

* * *

><p>Hikari couldn't help but eavesdrop. She couldn't help it. She didn't know anyone in this class; she was bored out of her mind. From what she gathered, they only needed one more member, and they needed a drummer. It was a perfect chance; she had been looking to join a club since Aoi joined the Wind Ensemble Club. She stood up and headed towards the three girls speaking.<p>

"I can play drums," she said.

Aira: "Ohh, that was like a surprise hero to the rescue."

Hikari laughed. "Oh please, it's nothing that amazing. I was eavesdropping."

Aira: "You couldn't have at least said 'overheard'?"

Sara: "Hikari-san, was it?"

Hikari: "Yeah?"

Sara: "Welcome to the Light Music Club!"

Hikari smiled at the beaming Sara. "Thanks!"

Aira: "And we were just about to discuss some strategy on recruiting."

Cecil: "Aira-san, we don't have to stop here; we can still recruit other people."

Aira: "Oh, derp."

Cecil: (Derp? What is that? Is that a Japanese word?)

Hikari: "Oh, the bell."

Sara: "Aren't you going to class, Cecil?"

* * *

><p>"Ohh, so this is the clubroom," Hikari remarked as they all entered the music room. "It's pretty plain."<p>

Sara: "Well, it hasn't been used in a while. We'll make the room alive. Do you need help setting your drums up?"

Hikari: "Nah, I'm okay."

Aira: "Woah, what's with these fancy-looking teacups?"

Cecil: "They look really expensive."

Aira: "They look like they'll break if I touch them."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Oh, one of the previous members left them here so the future members could use them."

Cecil: "That is to say… us?"

Aira: "That's nice of her—WAIT, when did you get here?"

Ms. Yamanaka: "How rude! I came through the door, you know?"

Hikari: "Wow, those look really nice. Sensei, do you want some tea?"

Cecil: "You brought tea to school?"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Would I!"

Sara: "I'd like tea, too."

Aira: "Snacks?"

Hikari: "I've got pudding!"

Cecil: "I thought we were a music club."

"Oh!" Ms. Yamanaka exclaimed. "I forgot to give this to you earlier, Sara-san," she said as she handed a piece of paper to Sara.

"Ah, the club application form. Thank you, Sensei."

"Excuse me, I came to obse—I smell something wonderful," a voice called. Coming in from the door was a girl with straw-colored hair. She had a nice figure, too. Sara felt like she recognized her….

Everybody froze, and Cecil's expression was one of passiveness and deadpan. "Don't mind them; we're totally a music club."

Then the new girl's eyes sparkled. "I want some too!"

Sara: "You're going to run out of pudding, Cecil."

Cecil: "Let's play something after this, please."

* * *

><p>It happened a lot quicker than I expected, but the Light Music Club quickly reformed as soon as I joined it. We even got more than four members, thanks to the power of pudding.<p>

On bass we have a childhood friend and neighbor of mine, Michiru Aira. She's a boyish, playful, and energetic girl who acts mostly on instinct. She has short black hair and black eyes.

Hikari: "So, Ai-chan,"

Aira: (Ai-chan?)

Hikari: "Why'd you pick bass?"

Aira: "Ah! That's because of that cool-looking lady I saw in that cultural festival concert! Ahh, she was so pretty and lady-like. Everybody seemed to love her, too."

Cecil: "You picked bass to be more ladylike?"

Aira: "I can see you smirking, you know."

Sara looked away.

Aira: "OI, I can HEAR YOU GIGGLING there."

Sara: "Sorry, sorry. Pfft."

On guitar is Cecil Jordan, a foreign exchange student from America. Me and Aira met her during junior high. She's usually silent and usually looks emotionless, so she's sometimes mistaken for being cold. Don't get her wrong, though! She's only silent because she finds speaking Japanese a bit uncomfortable, although she speaks it like a natural. She has long blonde hair and green eyes.

Tei: "Sessirru?"

Cecil: "Se-sill."

Tei: "You're pretty good with the guitar, Cecirru."

Cecil: "…"

Tei: "Have you been playing it for a long time?"

Cecil: "Oh, uhm, not too long. About five years."

Tei: "Ohhh. That's pretty great playing for five years. You must be pretty dedicated to it, Cecirru."

Cecil: "Uhm, it's Cecil."

Tei: "What was that, Cecchi?"

Cecil: "… Please stick with Cecirru."

Hikari: "Cecchi. PFFFT."

Aira: "I… shouldn't… laughpffft."

Sara: "That's cute."

Cecil: "Sara-san!"

Aira: "HAHAHAHA!"

Hikari: "PFFTAHAHAHA!"

On drums is Matsuoka Hikari. Her image looks like that of a diligent student of sorts. She's a geek, and she isn't bashful about it, either. She's "eccentric", friendly, and outgoing. She has back-length brown hair and hazel eyes with glasses.

Tei: "Oh, I just noticed, Hika-chan."

Hikari: (Hika-chan?) "What?"

Tei: "You're the smallest one here."

Hikari: "Hah! A wise man once said: 'size matters not.'"

Cecil: (She means Yoda, right?)

Tei: "What? I didn't even say anything."

Aira: "You're pretty sensitive about your height, aren't you?"

Hikari: "Stop smirking, my height doesn't bother me at all!"

Tei had an innocent face, but was pushing her breasts up with her crossed arms.

Hikari bolted up from her chair. "Are you picking a fight!"

Tei: "Ayaaaaa, what a scary child!"

Hikari: "I probably shouldn't give you any sweets."

Tei: "I apologize profusely."

Cecil: "… So, why did you pick drums, Hikari-san?"

Hikari: "Because drums are cool… I guess?"

Sara: "Maybe because you thought a guitar doesn't fit you?"

Hikari: "Sara-san, not you too!"

Sara: "I… I didn't say anything?"

On keyboard, we have Masayuki Tei. Tei is a very laid-back and sleepy person, but she's mischievous and loves to tease people. She has neck-length twin-tailed straw-colored hair and brown eyes.

Sara: "Why did you pick the keyboard, Tei-san?"

Tei: "Haha! I didn't pick it. My parents have been making me play it since I was four. I just grew to love it."

Hikari: "By the way, Tei, I've been thinking about this since we saw you, but you seem sorta familiar."

Tei: "Oh?"

Sara: "Same, actually. Aren't you one of the models in that fashion magazine?"

Hikari: "Oh, you're right!"

Tei smiled. "Yup, that's me."

Sara: "That's amazing. I'm jealous."

Aira: "You want to model?"

Cecil summoned up an image of Sara modeling. Well, she tried. It just didn't fit Sara's personality.

Sara: "No, no. It's all of those clothes! The pretty clothes I can't afford!"

Tei: "I have too much of them, I can lend you some."

Hikari: "Why are you so nice all of sudden?"

Aira: "Girl talk."

Cecil: "I thought you wanted to be 'lady-like', Aira-san."

Aira: "I can see you smirking, Cecil."

The fun times of a new Light Music Club! Our first year begins here!

"Now, to commemorate the start of the new Light Music Club," Aira was saying as she took Cecil's camera, "let's take a photo!"

Cecil: "When are we going to play something?"

Sara: "It's already late. We should go home."

* * *

><p>Glad I got that done! I hope that was fun to read. The genre of K-ON! is a completely new thing for me to write. It's a light slice of life comedy with heavy reliance on dialogue, so I had to revamp my writing. Since I normally write action-y, broody stuff. It wasn't really hard, but it wasn't easy either. Although, it sure was fun! Anyhow, I'm rather new to the fanfiction world, so please be gentle with me!<p>

PS: Character profiles (drawings and all) can be found in my profile!


	2. Episode 2: Music!

Keion!

Episode 2: Music!

* * *

><p>The school bells chimed. Nono was poking the sleeping Tei. "Tei-chan, wake up. Wake up."<p>

Cecil, who went over, pulled at Tei's hair. "Hey, it's time to go to the club."

"Ah! So she did join one, after all!"

Cecil sighed. "I don't see any dedication from her at all." (In fact, I don't see any dedication from anyone at all. I expected better from Sara but even she doesn't emit any dedication at all!)

The door to their classroom opened, and Sara, Aira, and Hikari came in. "Ceciiil, Teeeii, let's go to the clubroom," Hikari called.

Cecil and Nono faced them with hopeless looks.

Sara went closer, smiled and leaned down to Tei's ear.

"Sweets!" Tei bolted up.

Sara: "Time to go the clubroom, Tei-san."

* * *

><p>In the clubroom, tea and cookies. Tei looked serene. "You're such a kid," Hikari commented.<p>

Aira grinned. "You're one to talk."

"Anyway!" Cecil interrupted before anything else happened. "We should do something today."

"We're having tea," Aira said, biting down on a cookie.

Sara: "Don't talk with your mouth full."

Cecil: "Not that! We're a music club!"

Tei: "She's right, you know. We should practice."

Sara: "Don't talk with your mouth full!"

"She really is right, though," Hikari said thoughtfully. "We formed this club yesterday, but we haven't really done anything."

Sara: "Should we practice now?"

Aira pouted. "Let's finish these first, okay?" she said, munching on another cookie.

Sara sighed. "Oh, fine." Then an idea came to her. "While we're at it, we can talk about music."

Cecil: "Oh, that's a good idea."

Hikari: "Talk about music?"

Tei: "Like this: your favorite musicians, Sara-chan?"

Sara: "Ah. I like superc*ll, Kour*n, and Bump of Chi*ken."

Cecil: (B*mp of Chicken? Someone actually named their band that?)

Aira: "Well, yeah. Sara's always been the type to listen to ballads. I kinda expect to see her one day with an acoustic guitar, singing on the streets for money."

Sara: "Oh, I kind of want to try that."

Aira: "I was kidding."

Tei: "Then, Ai-chan, how about you?"

Aira: "P*radise Lunch!"

Cecil: (Parad*se Lunch? That sounds like a tropical resort, or something.)

Tei: "Ohhh, jazz, huh?"

Hikari: "I'm not sure why, but it sorta fits your image. Jazz, I mean."

Tei: "Same."

Sara: "Because of those sharp-looking cool guys you usually see with jazz? Like in Cowboy Beb*p and B*ccano?"

Hikari: "Ohh! You watch anime, Sara-san?"

Sara smiled. "Just a bit. It's my sister who likes them."

Cecil: "This conversation is getting out of hand."

Aira: "Paradise L*nch is an all-girls band, you know."

Sara: "What about you, Tei?"

Tei: "Well, aside from the usual classical… oh! I really like Kanno Yoko."

"She's just amazing, isn't she?" Hikari remarked with sparkling eyes.

Aira: "What about you, Cecil?"

"Me? Uhm, I like… R*diohead and the Beatles. Maybe Nickelb*ck, Green Da* and Flor*nce and the Machine, too." Cecil blushed. "Ah, and I also listen to a bit of My Ch*mical Romance. For Japanese music, I think I like the Pill*ws the best, though."

Tei: (Rejjuuhedd?)

Aira: (Florens end the masshin?)

Hikari: (The back of five cents?)

Sara: (What would a green sun be like?)

Tei: (Mai kemicarru lomans? Kemikallu romans? Eh? Is that Latin? Italian? French? An English tongue twister?)

Hikari: (Western bands sure come up with weird names!)

Aira: "So, what about you, Hikari?"

Cecil: (N-no comment!)

Hikari: "Me? Oh, I listen to M*y'n, Him*ka, Lot*s Juice, Sup*rcell, Th*tre Brook, Cherrybl*ssom, Abingd*n Boys School, Steph*nie, S*welu, Aqua T*mez, TH*ME, Rookiez is P*nk'd, P*ffy, Unl*mits, Unison Square Gard*n…"

Aira: "Woah, woah. That's a lot. That's an impressively broad taste, Hikari."

Tei: "Hmm. Let me guess. All of those that you named sang anime themes?"

Hikari: "Oh, you caught me."

Tei: "And you only listen to their anime songs?"

Hikari: "You're so sharp, Tei-chan!"

Aira: "I'm taking back my words of praise."

Cecil: (When did she start calling Tei-san with a –chan?)

Aira: "Ah. We're out of cookies."

Tei: "I'm out of tea."

Hikari: "I have more!"

Sara: "We're practicing now!"

"… Yeees," everybody else but Cecil replied.

Cecil: (They don't have any dedication at all!)

* * *

><p>While everybody was preparing for their instruments, Sara was cleaning up the tea set and the snacks. Hikari was beating on the drums, Aira and Cecil tuning their guitars, and Tei standing behind her keyboard, not looking sleepy at all, for some reason.<p>

Tei: "What's Sara playing, by the way?"

Aira: "Well…"

Cecil: "…"

Sara: "Nothing."

Tei: "Eh? What are you going to do, then? You're the one who pushed us to practice."

Hikari: "Aren't you the president?"

Sara smiled apologetically. "But I don't know how to play any instruments and I don't have the money for them either. I thought I could get by with just singing."

"Well, I don't think there's anything wrong with just being a vocalist," Ms. Yamanaka said from the table with a teacup in her hand. "But wouldn't it be nicer if you could also play an instrument?"

Aira: "When did you get here!"

Tei: "Sensei's right. Want to try out different instruments first?"

Sara: "Ehh? But I don't want to take your instruments away from you."

Hikari: "Oh, it's nothing! You're just testing out which one you like best before you go to get your own instrument!"

Tei beamed. "And then we'll all get jobs and work for the money you need!" Cecil was nodding in agreement.

Aira: "Uhh, am I the only one who's going to comment about Sawako-sensei? Hello?"

Hikari: "So then, let's start with… want to try the guitar first, Sara-san?"

Cecil walked up to Sara with her guitar. The determined look on her face made it hard for Sara to reject her offer, so she took it.

Ms. Yamanaka: "Ohh, it looks good on you!"

Cecil: "It really fits you, Sara-san."

Aira: "They're actually right."

Sara: "R-really?"

Aira: "Alright, teach her some beginner's stuff, Cecil!"

Cecil: "Roger!"

Hikari: (Roger?)

After about twenty minutes of teaching her the basics and the other girls playing their own instruments, Cecil faced them with an almost terrified look on her face. "T-there's nothing more I can teach." Sara just looked confused.

Aira: "What?"

Hikari: "Seriously?"

Tei: "Well, we can't really say she's learned until she plays something."

Hikari lit up. "Oh, I've got something," she said as she dug into her bag. She brought out sheet of paper, apparently guitar chords to a song called 'G*d Knows'.

Aira: "Hey, isn't that a bit hard for a beginner?"

Hikari: "We can let her play just the first half-minute."

Cecil: "Why were you carrying that around?"

Hikari smiled. "I was hoping we could play it."

Tei: "Ohh, give it a try, Sara."

"O-okay." Sara stared at it, then looked at Cecil. "Can you play this at least once? I want to hear it first."

"S-sure." Cecil nodded and took the guitar. She played the first thirty seconds of the song with great skill, especially considering that it was her first time playing that song. Then she passed the guitar back to Sara.

Sara took a deep breath, and then played past the thirty seconds flawlessly before she suddenly stopped. "Oh. I guess I went too far. How was that?" she asked as she looked up to see the stunned faces, except for Aira, who acted like nothing was unnatural, and for Tei, who was smiling and clapping her hands. "W-was it that bad?"

Ms. Yamanaka blinked, gulped, then coughed softly. "No, it wasn't bad. Rather, it was quite excellent," she said with a smile, all semblance of shock gone.

Cecil: "T-this is your first time playing a musical instrument?"

Sara: "Why would I lie to you? Ask Aira."

Aira remained silent while staring at Sara.

Hikari blinked, then shook her head. "W-well then, how about bass? I've got the chords for that, too."

Aira: "Alright! I'll teach you the basics."

Fifteen minutes later, Aira stood up, her face serious. "She's ready," she said with a thumb up and a confident smile. Sara just looked confused.

Tei clapped her hands together. "Is it time for Sara to play again?"

Sara played the first thirty seconds of 'God Kn*ws' just as flawlessly with bass as she did with the guitar.

"You've got serious musical talent, Sara," Tei commented with a smile after she finished.

"No kidding," Hikari added, her face serious.

Cecil looked almost terrified. Ms. Yamanaka looked no different.

Hikari: "Well then, want to try some drums?"

Sara looked out at the darkening orange sky through the window. "It's getting late."

Aira smiled knowingly. "Let's go home. We'll try the rest tomorrow."

* * *

><p>The next day, Sara was preparing the tea when Hikari came in, Aira munching on tea biscuits. "Oh, hey."<p>

Sara: "Don't talk with your mouth full."

"Is Sara-san going to try new instruments today, too?" Hikari was asking as she put down her bag and Cecil and Tei entered.

Aira: "Sure, why not?"

Sara somehow didn't look too eager. "Do I still have to?"

Aira grinned. "Come on, there's no loss in it. Tei looks excited about it, too."

Cecil: "I-I would like to see Sara-san try to play the other instruments too."

Hikari had a curious expression on her face. "Then, would you like to play right now?"

Aira: "Eh? How about tea time?"

Tei had a subtly eager look to her face. "We can have that later!"

Aira: "You're the last person I expected to hear that from."

"I want to see where this is going! Even Sawako-sensei agrees with me!" Hikari exclaimed. Ms. Yamanaka sipped her tea, then nodded.

Aira: "When did y—you know what, never mind."

After about fifteen minutes of Hikari teaching Sara while the others talked and played their own instruments, Hikari gave the go for her to play the drums for 'G*d Knows'. Sara just looked confused. Everybody looked less shocked than they did yesterday.

Hikari: (As expected, flawless!)

Cecil: (Sara-san, you're amazing!)

Ms. Yamanaka: (She'd look good in a cute maid outfit! Even better in magical girl clothes!)

Tei was clapping her hands. "Should we try the keyboard next?" she asked excitedly. Sara nodded reluctantly. Ten minutes later, Tei nodded and brought out a music sheet that said 'Via Purifico'. Sara looked confused, although a bit less than before. "Let's do at least the first minute of this."

Aira took a look at the sheet. "Wait, she's playing this? Isn't this way too hard?"

Cecil: "She's right. I don't think even someone like Sara-san could do that."

Tei just smiled as Sara played through the whole song perfectly.

Everybody else was speechless.

Hikari looked especially odd. "What the heck! She can play everything! Is this a story? Is someone writing what's happening here right now? Is she what they call a Mary Sue?"

Sara frowned at her. "That's hurtful."

Hikari: "Y-you can read my mind, too?"

Sara laughed. "You were thinking out loud."

Cecil seemed to be sparkling. "I admire you even more now, Sara-san!"

Tei looked impressed. "Wow! That piece took me an hour to play perfectly, but you did it in ten minutes!"

Hikari, Cecil: (Look more surprised, damn it!)

Aira: (Playing that piece in one hour is pretty crazy too!)

Sara just smiled. "Keyboard was actually pretty easy to learn. Tei's a great teacher, too."

Hikari, Cecil, Aira: (And we're not?)

* * *

><p>After all that calmed down, everybody was sitting around the table for their daily tea time. And Tei fell asleep.<p>

Aira: "Well, I can't say I'm too surprised about this."

Cecil: "Eh?"

Hikari: "Really? Sara-san's talent almost frightens me, to be honest."

Ms. Yamanaka: (I can't make her wear a magical girl costume! These children don't even know 'that' me! Resist the temptation, Sawako!)

Aira laughed. "Sara's always had a knack for doing everything great. She's kind of like an ace-of-all-trades."

Cecil: (Not 'jack'?)

Ms. Yamanaka: "So, which one are you choosing, Sara-san?"

Sara sighed. "I just don't feel right with an instrument."

Aira looked at her curiously. "Oh? Why's that?"

Cecil: "But you're really good with them."

Sara: "I don't know. I just want to sing."

Hikari: "I can't say I understand, but come to think of it, we never heard you sing."

Ms. Yamanaka: "What's wrong with singing while playing the instrument?"

"I don't want to hog the spotlight; I want us all to have fun together and equally, even while performing. Aira on bass, Cecil on the guitar, Hikari on drums, Tei on the keyboard, and me on vocals. Just like that. We all shine together, and no one shines brighter than the other," Sara said, her face serious. Then she blushed. "Besides, it's… kind of embarrassing."

Aira: (What you just said feels even more embarrassing!)

Ms. Yamanaka: "So, in other words, you don't want to feel like you're stealing the spotlight from anyone?"

Sara nodded. "I guess so, yes."

Hikari: "I guess a vocalist with an instrument really does capture a lot of attention. Aside from the embarrassing part, I still don't quite see where you're coming from, though."

Tei: "Maybe she wants to dance while singing? Like an idol?"

Cecil: "Wouldn't that capture even more attention?"

Aira: "I thought you were sleeping."

Tei: "I don't think we'll know what to do unless we hear her sing."

Aira: "Oh, let's do that. I've never heard Sara sing before."

Hikari: "Oh, I agree, I agree."

Cecil was nodding.

Sara: "Eh? Right now?"

Tei rose up excitedly. "Ah! What should we make her sing?"

Hikari: "God Kn*ws again!"

Aira: "Haha, let's go with something different this time."

Tei: "Something exotic and exquisite!"

Cecil: "Those don't sound like words you'd use to describe a song, Tei-san."

Sara: (I feel like I'm being made into their plaything.)

Tei brought out something from her bag. "I expected this, so I brought a nice song!"

Hikari: "Lumis Eterne?"

Aira: "Hey, this isn't even Japanese."

Cecil: "It's not even in English."

Tei just blinked. "It's Esperanto."

Sara: (Maybe this isn't a good idea…)

Tei: "It's fine, it's fine! It's only a short version; I'll teach you the words and play the piano."

Aira: "You can read that!"

After about fifteen minutes of teaching the words, Tei was on the keyboard, looking enthusiastic. "Let's go," she told Sara, then started playing.

_"Vesperruĝo,fluas en ondetoj._  
><em>"Ĝi estas kiel la kanto, bela kanto de feliĉo.<em>  
><em>"Ĉu vi rimarkis birdojn, portanta afableco?<em>  
><em>"Super la maro flugas, ili flugas kun amo.<em>  
><em>"Oranĝa ĉielo emocias mian spiriton.<em>  
><em>"Stelo de espero, stelo lumis eterne,<em>  
><em>"Lumis Eterne"<em>

Her voice sang beautifully, even hauntingly. The song seemed to resonate through the room, maybe even outside, and the whole school must have gone silent.

Sara: "H-how was that?"

Everyone may have been speechless earlier when Sara played the keyboard, but right now, everyone's jaw was hanging open. Ms. Sawako wasn't even thinking about dressing Sara up. Tei, on the other hand, was beaming like a proud teacher and clapping her hands.

Tei: "With that kind of singing, I don't think an instrument will be able to do anything to dampen her shining."

"Bright, so bright," Hikari remarked with squinted eyes when she finally found the words.

Aira: "Ah, Cecil, your eyes look wet."

Cecil jerked up. "T-they do not!" she denied, wiping her eyes.

Tei: "Ohhh? Cecirru was so touched by Sara's song she cried?"

Cecil: "I wasn't crying!"

Hikari laughed. "So, Sawako-sensei, what did you thin—you're crying!"

"I couldn't help it," Ms. Yamanaka replied while wiping her eyes with the handkerchief Sara handed to her. "It was so touching." Then she was back to her sparkling smile. "I suppose that settles it? Sara's sticking to just doing vocals. Aren't you glad?"

Sara smiled. "Yes!"

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I don't own Aria: the Origination or anything referenced above.<p>

Whew, finally finished that. I wrote most of the second half during midnight, actually. Well then. I promised the fic would be more "in tune" with K-ON's mood, but somehow I feel like it's getting closer to Lucky Star with a focus on music (or is that what K-ON is?). Most of the dialogue is presented in an almost-play-script-thing-like form, so I apologize to those who can't like it. It seemed to be the best way to bring out fun group conversations without breaking the pace. I would've loved to add reaction faces to them, as cute reaction faces are the backbone of K-ON dialogue. But doing that would not only ruin the pace, but also feel awkward. So I'm leaving the reaction faces to your imagination and hope you got the faces same as I did in my head. It also makes me very sad that I can't put in any music into your heads through words. Since you undoubtedly know God Knows, do listen to Via Purifico and Lumis Eterne. Well then, I hope you had fun reading! (Note: Updates won't always come this quick, mind you.)


	3. Episode 3: Studying!

Keion!

Episode 3: Studying!

* * *

><p>A new peaceful day in Sakura High, inside the calming clubroom of the Light Music Club. Sara was serving the tea Hikari brought as usual, and this time, it was Tei who brought the snacks, the snacks being cake. "This is a quality cake made by Nono! It's amazing!" was what she said. Although, having finished her piece of the cake earlier than the others, she was asleep.<p>

Hikari suddenly screamed, then slammed her face onto the table. Sara could've sworn she could see wisps of smoke drifting from her head. Tei stiffened for a second, but didn't wake up. Aira looked up from tuning her bass. "What's up?" she asked.

Hikari shifted her head to look at her. "I'm studying for midterms."

Cecil: "But isn't that like, two weeks away?"

Hikari lifted herself up, and let out a huge sigh. "You don't understand," she said, her arms crossed. "I may look smart with these glasses on, but I'm dumber than most people, so I have to study hard."

Aira: "Ohh. I feel sorry for you. I'm naturally good with academics, so I don't have to study!"

Sara: "Yes, you do!"

Tei: "Ohhh, really? Calling yourself smart? It doesn't fit your image."

Aira: "Shut up and go back to sleep!"

Hikari lit up. "Oh, I know. Should we have a study session this Sunday?"

Tei: "Ah, that sounds fun."

Aira: "That's a great idea!"

Sara: "A study session is for studying."

Cecil: "I'm in for it. I've been needing some help, too."

Hikari threw her arms up happily. "So, it's set! Whose house do we go to?"

Tei: "How about Ai-chan's?"

Aira: "Why mine? Wait, what's with that suspicious look, you."

Sara laughed. "Let's not. Aira's room is really messy."

Aira: "WHA—I do clean it… every now and then."

Sara: "I'm the one who's always cleaning your room."

Hikari leaned towards Cecil. "Do they always talk like a couple?"

"Huh? They're always like that, if that's what you mean," the blonde girl replied, confused.

Tei: "Well, if Aira's no good…"

Aira: "Hey, I think you left out the 'place' after the 'Aira's'?"

Tei: "How about Cecil?"

Cecil: "My place is pretty far, and it's small, so it might be a bit cramped. We should go to Hikari-san's, since she's the one who suggested the study session."

Tei: "Ehhhhh? But I'm not in the mood of uncovering the secrets in Hikari's room."

Hikari: "HEY."

Sara: "Ah, that's a good idea. Can we, Hikari?"

Hikari brought a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "I wish I could say yes, but I don't think it'll be a good time. My dad's doing his work at home at Sunday, so it might not be a good idea. I suggested the study session in the first place so I don't bug him."

"Ahh, that's too bad." Aira grinned. "Then, how about Tei's? I bet she has juicy secrets in her room."

Cecil: (Juicy?)

Sara cuffed Aira at the back of her head. "We're going there to study!"

Tei: "Sure."

Aira: "Wait, that reply had no hesitation at all."

Tei winked at Aira. "It's not like you'll be able to find anything, Ai-chan!"

Aira: "Are you judging me by your image of me again!"

* * *

><p>Then Sunday came. Everyone agreed to meet up at Max Burger at 8am before heading out for Tei's. Sara and Aira were there first. "Ahhh, I'm hungry," Aira muttered. "I came here without breakfast, so I'm going to go get some inside."<p>

"Okay, sure," Sara nodded. Then she smiled. "Can you treat me to a hash brown?"

Aira grinned knowingly. "Yes, yes."

A few minutes later, Cecil appeared. "Hey! Cecil!" Sara called from across the street.

"Good morning, Sara-san," Cecil greeted her with a smile.

"That's a cute outfit," Sara remarked.

Cecil blushed. "Thanks."

Then Hikari came. "Woah, you look great with a simple style, Sara-chan!" she exclaimed when she saw Sara, who was wearing a dark blue cardigan over a white button-down shirt, and a simple pair of black jeans.

Sara giggled. "Thank you. You look charming yourself."

Hikari looked at Cecil, and eyed her from head to toe. The foreign exchange student was wearing a light blue camisole with a pair of white capris. "And Cecil's adorable," she said, with something like a smirk and her hand over it.

Cecil just blushed. "Sh-shut it!"

"Ah, there you two are!" Aira called as she exited Max Burger. "Oh, here's your hash brown."

Hikari could've sworn Aira was twinkling and sparkling with bubbles on the background just then. The bassist was just wearing a thin open dark grey parka over a black shirt and a pair of dark jeans. It was simple and unlike Sara, not that fashionable, but somehow, seeing her in this casual style gave her a boyish charm that wasn't there when she's wearing her school uniform. And it was hard to resist.

That sparkling person chuckled. "Hikari, you look like a kid in that one piece," the sparkling person commented, regarding Hikari's deep bordeaux dress with a bow at the chest. She was also wearing white pants underneath.

Hikari: "Sh-shut it!"

Cecil: (Is she blushing? She's definitely blushing.)

Sara was smiling peacefully as she ate the hash brown. "This is nostalgic. You reacted pretty much the same way, too."

Cecil: "I-I did not!"

* * *

><p>"Ah, here it is," Hikari said when she spotted the Masayuki plate on the house's gate. She ringed the doorbell.<p>

Cecil, Aira, Sara: (It's huge!)

Cecil: (If I had that much space right now, I'd be a happy person!)

Sara: (If our house was that big, it'll be less cramped and just wonderful for the family!)

Aira: (How many secrets could she be hiding there!)

A howling dog snapped them out of their reveries. Cecil, upon seeing the big white dog, however, seemed to have drifted into a new one.

"Ah! Hold on a second!" Tei's voice chimed from the receiver. Then she appeared from the front door to open the gates for them. "Welcome, welcome!"

Hikari: "Excuse us!"

Sara, Aira: "Good morning!"

Sara: "Ah! You look like a celebrity, Tei!"

Tei: "Thanks! You look great, too!"

Cecil didn't say anything; she went for the dog as soon as the gate opened, immediately getting to petting it. The dog wagged its tail and poked its nose at her hand.

Hikari: "What's up with her? It's odd to see her out of manners."

Sara: "That's a cute dog."

Tei: "His name's Kunkun! He's a good boy, so you could play with him all you like!"

Cecil: "Kunkuuuun."

Hikari: "Pfft!"

Aira: "I was expecting you to be asleep when we got here."

Tei: "Oh ho ho! Don't judge me by your image of me, Ai-kun!"

Aira: "Where did that –kun come from?"

* * *

><p>After successfully pulling a struggling Cecil away from Kunkun, the Light Music Club finally went inside, where they were greeted by a white cat, and then they lost Cecil again. "His name's Nyanko," Tei said.<p>

"Nyanko-senseeeiii," Cecil was muttering as she petted the purring cat.

Hikari: "She looks so peaceful. Should we just leave her?"

Sara bowed apologetically. "I'm sorry; Cecil's really weak to cute things."

Hikari: (Why are you apologizing?)

Tei: "It's fine, it's fine! I'm glad Cecirru appreciates their cuteness."

Aira: "Let's see, what's around here? How about here? Ohhh! This looks suspicious!"

Sara yanked Aira's hair. "Stop that!"

It was a hard task, but they also successfully pulled Cecil away from Nyanko. They headed to Tei's room, and there they were greeted by a small white bunny, and then they lost Cecil again. "His name's Barnaby!" Tei said.

Cecil: "Bunny-chaaaan."

Hikari: "How many pets do you have!"

Tei: "Ah, here. Meet my turtle. He's called Tonton!"

Aira was tiptoeing towards a closet before Sara stopped her.

It was still a hard task, but they successfully pulled Cecil away from Barnaby. Tei had covered Tonton with a blanket on Sara's request. Sara was downstairs making tea, sternly telling Aira not to snoop around while she was gone. The study session started, and Cecil was teaching Hikari Literature as if nothing had happened that involved cute animals.

"Cecirru's a pretty good teacher, isn't she?" Tei observed after a few minutes.

"It's a bit surprising, but she really is," Aira agreed, a hand supporting the weight of her bored head. "I'm bored, Tei."

Tei smiled. "Ohh? I thought you came here to find my juicy secrets?" Then Aira was up on her feet.

Then Sara came in with tea, put it down, and pulled Aira by the ear back to the low-lying table. "You're studying too!" Tei just giggled.

Aira: "Ehhh, why do I have to! Like I said, I'm naturally good with academics!"

Sara: "You are, but then you take it for granted and never study."

Aira: "Hah! Watch me get high scores on the midterms without studying!"

Sara: "Suit yourself. We're having this study session now, so I won't be helping you cram the night before."

Aira: "Please guide me, Sara-dono."

Hikari: "How about you, Tei? You don't look like you're studying."

Tei blinked at her as though Hikari just asked a ludicrous question. "Me? I get high scores on tests without studying."

Aira leapt up and made a victorious pose.

Sara: "AIRA."

The bassist immediately sat down.

Cecil pushed an English textbook towards Tei, who jerked back as if it was something blindingly bright.

Hikari smirked. "It looks like to me you need some help, too."

Tei punched a fist into the air with energy that didn't fit her at all. "I'm Japanese! I don't need to learn English!"

"Tei-san," Aira called as she put a hand on the pianist's shoulder. "I completely agree with you."

Tei took hold of Aira's hand. "Ai-kun…"

Aira: "Tei-san…"

Hikari vision: Sparkles and twinkling bubbles all over Aira

Cecil: "If you dislike English that much, how do you still get good grades on it, Tei-san?"

Tei: "It's the only subject I need help with, so I get Nonochi to help me out."

Aira: "So you do study! I feel betrayed!"

Sara cuffed Aira.

Cecil smiled. "Would you like some help, then?"

Tei: "You seemed like a kind person during that second, Cecirru!"

Cecil frowned. "Fine then, I'm not helping you."

Tei: "Eye ahm khiddhing! Phreass tiich mii Amerikano!"

Hikari: "Don't you need any help with anything, Cecil?"

Sara: "Ah, I'm helping her with math after I'm done with Aira."

Hikari: "Ohhh. How about you, Sara-san?"

Aira scratched her nose and looked away. "Sara's the type who gets high scores without studying."

Sara: "I do study! I'm not you!"

* * *

><p>Tei was writing down English words when she heard something coming down from her window. Sort of like a 'fyuuuuuuuung' sound. Then she saw… a bunny girl! "Cecirru!" White bunny ears! White pantyhose! White bunny dress!<p>

"HARRO EVERYNYAN" Cecil(?) said in a loud voice before entering. "HOW AH YOO? FAIN SANKYUU."

Tei: "OH MAI GAAAHH"

Cecil(?): "UH EYE WISH EYE WAH A BUHHD"

Tei: "Why are you speaking in English, Cecirru?"

Cecil(?): "I am not Cecil, I am Barnaby."

Tei: "Ah! Bunny-chaaan!"

Cecil(?): "It's not Bunny-chan! It's Barnaby (desu)!"

Then there was a little school girl with striped cat ears and whiskers. She was carrying a bokken and had a clearly unamused face.

Tei: "Hika-chan!"

Hikari(?): "I'm the superhero WAILD TAIGA! The city needs help! It's being attacked by a huge white dog!"

There was a huge cosplayer outside, destroying the city with its scimitar! It's buckler, which had a maple leaf on it, crashed into a house, pulverizing it! "Ai-kun!" There was a tag on the huge cosplayer's neck that said 'Kunkun'.

Aira(?): "NYAAAAAAAA"

Hikari(?): "Let's go, Bunny-chan!"

Cecil(?): "BUNNY-CHAN JA NAI, BARNABY DESU"

Then there was a giant turtle that attacked the huge cosplayer! "Ton-chan! It's rude to attack other people's pets!" a huge cat girl scolded the pig-nosed turtle.

"Azunyan, Azunyan, strike a pose!"

"L-like this?"

Then Sara's voice rang out: "THE BLACK CAT OF ILL OMEN."

"That's really cute, Azusa-chan! Do it again, do it again!"

"**THE ****BLACK ****CAT**** OF**** ILL ****OMEN**."

Huh? There was someone shaking her. It was a girl with short black hair, her bangs held up by a pair of cute clips.

Tei: "Nonochi?"

"Tei-chaaan. Tei-chaaaaaan. Tei-chaaaading dong. Ding dong. Ding dong."

THEN SHE WOKE UP.

Hikari: "Ah. Welcome back."

Tei slowly rose. "We have a visitor," she said sleepily.

Aira barely had the time go "Eh?" when the doorbell rang. A minute later, Tei brought up the visitor.

Cecil: "Ah! Nono-san!"

Nono: "Hello! How's the study session going?"

Tei: "It's doing pretty good."

Nono: "But you look like you just woke up."

Cecil: "She just did."

Tei: "Let me introduce them to you, Nonochi. This is the Light Music Club! You already know about Cecirru, she's our classmate, after all. This is Michiru Aira-kun, then Matsuoka Hikari-chan, and Kazumiya Sara-san."

Aira, Hikari, and Sara bowed their heads. "Nice to meet you."

Nono bowed back. "I'm Tamayura Nono. I live around here, and Tei-chan's been my friend ever since we were small."

Hikari: "Tamayura? You mean, THAT Tamayura?"

Nono smiled and bowed to Hikari. "Thank you for your patronage, Matsuoka-sama." This was an action that left everyone but Tei confused. Hikari awkwardly bowed back.

Hikari: "N-no need! I should be thanking you for the pastries your family gives us. They're amazing."

"Then the sweets you bring in the clubroom are from them?" Sara asked. Then she bowed. "Thank you for your generosity."

"I-it's no problem," Nono replied, taken aback. "Anyway, I brought tarts."

Aira: "Awesome, I was just getting hungry!"

They were exceptionally pretty-looking tarts, too.

Cecil: (C-cute…)

Hikari: "They look so cute I feel like I shouldn't eat them!"

Aira: "You're right! But I'm going to take one anyway."

Tei: "Nonochi's family's pastries are legendary, but she makes the best of them."

Nono: "Tei-chan! Don't exaggerate, it puts pressure on me!"

Everyone took a bite.

Sara: "Oh! These are incredible!"

Everybody else was speechless.

Cecil: (S-she's right!)

Aira: (She wasn't exaggerating at all!)

Hikari: (This is a crime! A tart shouldn't taste this good!)

Tei: (Heaven!)

Nono giggled, and snapped a photo of the girls sparkling over the sweets. Then she noticed the blanket covering Tei's pet turtle. "Tei-chan! Why did you cover up Tonton like this? He'll get lonely, you know!"

Ceil: "Tonton?"

Sara: "Wait, don't—!"

Cecil was next to the aquarium, staring at the turtle with adoration.

Nono: "I-I'm sorry."

Aira: "Ah! Tell us an embarrassing childhood story about Tei!"

Hikari: "Yes! Do that!"

Nono just laughed. "I wish I could do that, but there's only embarrassing stories of me. Tei-chan's always helped me out, so I can't remember anything embarrassing that she did." Tei was smiling. It wasn't a proud smile, it was more of a curious smile.

Hikari: "Tei being nice and helpful?"

Aira: "It doesn't fit her image."

Tei: "It seemed you didn't get a juicy secret, Ai-kun!"

Aira: "Shut up!"

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I still don't own anything referenced above.<p>

I didn't want to keep going along with the anime, where Yui also studies for the midterms (well, the make-up) in the third episode, but I couldn't help it. I was also studying for the midterms. Now I'm hoping it went fine, since I wrote this instead of doing any real studying. I had a bit too much fun with clothes, too, apparently. And I apologize for that dream sequence. I really do. I still am quite sad that so far, I'm not seeing the fic I wanted to write. Hopefully, I'll get there. Anyway, I hope you had fun reading this chapter! Until next time!


	4. Episode 4: Ms Yamanaka!

Keion!

Episode 4: Ms. Yamanaka!

* * *

><p>She woke up an hour before she usually did, and when she went to school, she found just how calm and silent it was without all the students. Everything was still; her footsteps seemed to echo throughout the hallways as she walked towards the clubroom. It was all still. The newly-woken sun shed a different light on the room than usual. She found it calming.<p>

Sitting down, Cecil took out her guitar, a simple alpine white Les Paul. Then she fumbled through her bag for the song Sara recently wrote for the club.

With everything so silent, her playing rang loudly to her ears, and she felt like she could just go on. She loved playing with the guitar. She wanted to do it forever. Maybe, one day, she'll shake the world with it.

Maybe, all of them will become stars. All of them, as one. The club.

It may seem unlikely right now, but Cecil liked to think of it that way. She wanted to play the guitar with this group of friends forever. When she stopped playing, she chuckled.

_I'm overthinking it. We haven't even all known each other for that long._

Then she sighed, and shook her head.

_If that thought went across Sara-san's mind, she'd just say something like: "And this is where I start knowing them." I have to think the same way._

Now that she was thinking about it, their little music club didn't have a name.

* * *

><p>"Say, is it true that a guitarist's fingers become tough once they get used to all the fretting?" Tei asked after they went through one song. She was looking at her fingers curiously.<p>

"Yup," Aira answered, holding out her hand, which Tei took. "See?"

Hikari was watching them, then she looked at her own hands, callused from all the drumming she does.

Cecil was staring into space, looking distracted by something inside her mind. This was odd, since she was the one who usually tells them to stop screwing around and to get practicing again. Sara noticed this, and was going to approach Cecil but was stopped when Aira mentioned her.

"Ah, you should try Sara's hands too. They're not tough or anything, but they're definitely a unique experience," Aira said, grinning wildly.

Tei looked at the suddenly flustered Sara.

Sara: "A-aira—!"

Hikari perked up. "What's up with Sara's hands?"

Tei smiled dangerously, then was suddenly by Sara's side, taking the vocalist's hand into her own. "Oh! They feel wonderful!" she exclaimed when she brought it up to her face. They felt heavenly, "So soft and smooooth," Tei crooned, massaging the hand lovingly. Then the blushing Sara was looking away, and she let out something that sounded like a moan. Everybody in the room froze (except Aira, who was grinning in a gentler version of just-as-keikaku). Even Cecil snapped out of her reverie.

Curious, Tei tried pressing Sara's palm again. There was that sound again! Her face was looking away, but Tei could tell Sara was blushing fiercely and almost looked like she was trembling. Aira was still grinning, Hikari looked surprised, and Cecil was also blushing. Tei's eyes twinkled, and her smile grew wider. Stronger and faster hand massaging!

Sara: "S-STOOOP!"

The clubroom's door opened, and Ms. Yamanaka appeared. The room became still. Quiet.

The flustered Sara yanked her hand away from Tei, whirled around, walked to Aira, and swung a fist at her. It didn't hit the bassist.

Aira laughed slowly in a low voice from behind her block. "Not this time, ojou-san! I stayed up all night watching kung fu movies!" Then she saw something that was obscured from everybody else: Sara's I'm-not-angry-at-all face. Aira freaked out, and this all ended with her cheeks being severely pinched by Sara.

Hikari and Tei were marveling over the burning red cheeks (by poking them curiously) when Sara served Ms. Yamanaka some tea. "So, what can we do for you today, Yamanaka-sensei?" she asked, smiling as though nothing happened.

"Thank you, Sara-san. I only came here to take a break and watch you girls play. I hope that's fine?" Ms. Yamanaka replied, knowing well to just go along.

"Of course! Being a teacher must be stressful, and you are our supervisor, after all." Sara replied with the same smile, her tone no different from what it usually was.

Cecil: (The air feels heavy…)

* * *

><p>It was getting late when they finally decided to call stops and start heading home. Cecil, wanting to spend a bit more time in the clubroom, stayed behind, waving away a worried-looking Sara with a smile. Well, she was supposed to be the last one behind, but for some reason, Ms. Yamanaka was still here. Cecil sighed as she looked at the tired-looking teacher, sleeping on the table.<p>

She poked Ms. Yamanaka's shoulder, and pushed. "Sensei, you should wake up."

The teacher woke up, just not in the way Cecil expected. Ms. Yamanaka jerked up, yelling "I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU TO COME!" in the most frightening voice she had ever heard. Cecil quickly backed away in surprise.

Ms. Yamanaka snapped back to reality. "Eh? Is everyone already done?" she asked, her voice back to normal.

Cecil didn't reply, she just looked terrified.

Ms. Yamanaka: "W-what is it?"

Cecil: "J-just now, you…"

Ms. Yamanaka fell down. "I knew I wasn't dreaming when I said that!" she sobbed.

Cecil: "S-sensei?"

Ms. Yamanaka dashed to Cecil, kneeling and holding the guitarist's hands. "Cecil!" she called loudly.

Cecil jumped. "Y-yes!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Help me get Sara into a magical girl costume!"

There was an amazing silence then, a silence far more silent than the silence that happened earlier. Well, maybe not. Cecil's head was flooded with so much images from today's events and more from what was just said that it threatened to explode violently. And then there was also Ms. Yamanaka's uncharacteristic begging face; Cecil's brain just stopped working momentarily.

Cecil: "..."

Ms. Yamanaka: "…"

Cecil: "..."

Ms. Yamanaka: "…"

Cecil: "..."

Ms. Yamanaka: "…"

Cecil: "…Eh? Come again?"

There should be a commercial break at about right here, and that'd be perfect, except this is a written piece.

Ms. Yamanaka: "You heard me. I want to put Sara in a magical girl costume!"

Cecil's brain threatened to stop working again. She shook her head. Blinked. "Sensei? Is that you?"

"IT IS ME," Ms. Yamanaka replied with the frightening voice.

That helped Cecil's brain clear up.

Ms. Yamanaka sighed wearily. "It's hard, struggling to keep up the elegant and charming teacher image. The girls from the previous Light Music Clubs let me take a break from that. Tea time almost every afternoon," she said, her face nostalgic. Then she sighed again. "But now there are new girls, and though I tried to keep the elegant image, I had to fight the urges to dress you all up in cute clothes all the time!" She faced Cecil. "Cecil-san! Help me put Sara in cute clothes! Help me reveal this side of me!"

Cecil held up a hand, palm facing Ms. Yamanaka. "Sorry! Please ask Hikari instead." She turned to leave immediately, but the teacher grabbed her.

Ms. Yamanaka(?): "**STAAAAYY!**"

Cecil sat down. Screen cut transition.

Cecil: "So… what was it about this side of you? You're a tailor who wants to fit cute girls into cute things?"

Ms. Yamanaka nodded. "That, and the fact that I used to be in the Light Music Club."

That perked up Cecil's interest. "Really? I didn't expect that! What did you play?"

The teacher touched her cheek with her hand, a supposedly elegant motion. "I played the guitar."

Cecil handed her guitar to Ms. Yamanaka. "Play something!"

Ms. Yamanaka obliged, playing several pieces of songs well-known for being hard to play. Then she smiled proudly.

Cecil looked eager. "You're really good, sensei! Can you teach me when you have the time?"

Ms. Yamanaka: (**Just****as****planned.**)

Ms. Yamanaka: "Then, I suppose you're going to help me put Sara in a magical girl costume?"

Cecil flinched, remembering about that. "I'm sorry, I must respectfully decline."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Why!"

Then the door burst open, and in came Aira. She was grinning. Hikari and Tei were also there.

Aira: "I heard everything."

Cecil: "Everyone! I thought you all headed home already!"

Hikari: "I knew there was something dark and evil behind Sawa-chan's elegant and cute eyes. It just had to be!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "HEY."

Tei: "We thought of stopping by Max Burger on the way home, but Sara said she had to go home now, so she's gone."

Cecil: "That doesn't explain why _you__'__re_ here."

"I forgot something," Aira claimed innocently, blinking her eyes girlishly.

Cecil: "That's a complete lie!"

Tei: "I want to see Sara-san in a cute magical girl outfit!"

Hikari: "It'll be a sight to see!"

Aira: "Revenge!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Everyone, thank you!"

Cecil sighed and looked away. "I have no part in this."

* * *

><p>And still, Cecil found herself in the group's meeting in Max Burger. "Hey! Why am I with you!"<p>

Aira: "You might tell Sara."

She had a point, Cecil thought. She made a move to leave, but Ms. Yamanaka's glare froze her.

Cecil: (How is she that scary! A tailor who happens to be able to play guitar shouldn't be that scary!)

Aira: "And so! Here we start to plan for Operation: Make Sara Into a Magical Girl!"

Tei, Hikari, Ms. Yamanaka: "Ohhh!"

Cecil: (I don't want to be heeerree!)

Hikari: "General! We will all require the info you have on the target!"

Tei: "Her weaknesses!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Yes!"

Aira: "Haha! Luckily for you, you have me, her childhood friend! I know all her strengths and weaknesses!"

Tei: "I'm guessing one of her weaknesses would be her sensitive hands?"

Hikari: "Ohh, about that. I really didn't expect something like it. Is this some kind of fetish by the writer of this story? This just further enforces that she is a Mary Sue!"

Aira: "I don't understand what you're saying. In Japanese, okay?"

Tei: "How did you discover it in the first place, Ai-kun?"

Aira: "Well… it was an accident… I think?"

Ms. Yamanaka was in deep thought. "We should figure out a way to exploit this weakness to our advantage."

* * *

><p>"Sara-saaaan," Tei called. "Would you like me to tell your fortune?"<p>

Sara smiled eagerly. "That sounds fun. Sure."

Tei: "Okay then! Hold out your hand."

Sara: "M-my hand?"

Tei looked innocent. "I don't have anything else to tell a fortune with," she claimed.

Sara: "T-that's all right! I guess there's no fortune-telling to be done, then!"

Tei pouted. "Come oooonn. I asked and you said yes, don't get me excited over nothing."

Sara blushed. "F-fine." She held out her hand reluctantly.

Tei smiled and reached out to take it, but it dodged her hands. She tried to take it again, but Sara's hand slipped out of the way. Try again. Foiled again. Try again. Foiled again. Try again. Foiled again. Their hands almost dancing with each other, Aira screamed in frustration watching them.

"Let her catch your hand already!" she yelled, grabbing Sara's wrist just to hear her yelp. The next thing Aira saw was a fist flying to her face.

Aira: "No good. That plan won't work. She already knows about us knowing about her hands."

Ms. Yamanaka: "That's a good point. Are there any other weaknesses, Aira-chan?"

Aira: "Of course!"

Hikari: "Tell us!"

Aira chuckled. "Sara is actually also… very ticklish!"

* * *

><p>Practice had ended. It was also rather late, so Sara decided that they should all head home. Well, that was what she decided, but everybody else seemed to have a different idea.<p>

All she heard was Cecil saying: "I'm very sorry, Sara-san," before she heard the door's lock click. Then there were Tei and Hikari stalking her from the front, their hands in a very menacing pose that looked like they were either ready to grope or to tickle.

Then Sara heard Aira's voice, yelling, "NOW! SAWA-CHAN!"

A sudden attack from behind her! The supposedly cute and elegant teacher had grabbed her waist!

Ms. Yamanaka(?): "**Tickle!**** Tickle ****tickle!**** Wear**** this**** magical**** girl**** outfit ****for ****me**** if**** you ****don****'****t**** want**** to ****be**** tickled**** anymore!**"

The sudden assault was too much for Sara, she was already giggling uncontrollably!

Aira: "Wait, Sawa-chan! I just remembered something!"

Ms. Yamanaka looked at Aira, but didn't stop tickling the giggling Sara.

Aira: "Sara's actually… a master of martial arts!"

It was a late warning, as Sara grabbed the teacher, and the next thing Ms. Yamanaka knew was she was flying through the air for less than a second. Then she was on the floor. "T-tell me that sooner…" she mumbled as her soul slithered out of her mouth.

Aira would've apologized, but Sara was glaring at her.

* * *

><p>Ms. Yamanaka: "M-my soul…."<p>

Aira: "No, that won't work either."

Tei: "Any other weaknesses?"

Aira closed her eyes, trying to think. "…Not much else, to be honest."

Hikari: "This calls for other kinds of tactics! Tei! We'll get through her defenses with the power of cute!"

Tei: "Yes! We'll get Barnaby on the job!"

* * *

><p>When Sara came into the clubroom after school, the last thing she expected to see was a white bunny gazing at her with red eyes that seemed to gaze at her soul.<p>

"Kazumiya Sara," it called with an emotionless voice that seemed a lot like Hikari's. Called might not be the right word, though, as the voice seemed to come from within her head.

"How do you know my name?"

"I have a request for you," it said. "I want you to make a contract with me and become a Magical Girl!"

Now playing: Sis puella magica!

"Contract?" Sara echoed.

The bunny kept staring at her. "Yes. I can fulfill one of your wishes. It can be anything. I'll be able to grant it, no matter how miraculous. However, in doing so, a Soul Gem will be created."

"Soul Gem?"

"It's a precious stone, born out of the contract between me and a chosen girl. It is a source of magical power and proof of a Magical Girl's identity. One with this stone becomes obligated to fight Witches as a Magical Girl."

"Witches?"

* * *

><p>Aira: "We're getting out of track here. Get serious!"<p>

Ms. Yamanaka: "Are you sure there isn't anything else we could take advantage of?"

Aira groaned. "I know there is something, but I can't put a finger on it…" She took a bite off the burger in her hand.

Cecil: "… You mean food?"

Aira jumped up. "That's it! Food!"

Tei: "Ohhh? I thought you weren't in this, Cecirru."

Cecil huffed and looked away. "Hmph. It's not like I have a choice or anything else to do." Of course, Cecil would never admit that she also wanted to see Magical Girl Sara. She doubted anything would work though, not even food.

Hikari: "Such a cute little tsundere."

* * *

><p>When Sara entered the club room, she didn't expect such a wonderful smell of food to assault her nose. Neither did she expect the rest of the club members wearing maid uniforms; Aira grinning awkwardly, Hikari and Tei smiling like this was a completely ordinary thing to do, Cecil blushing and trying to hide.<p>

Aira: "Welcome, Princess Sara, to the buffet of your dreams!"

Tei: "All the food of your wishes is to be served!"

Hikari: "We've got everything, varying from fast food fare, traditional and exquisite dishes, elegantly-made restaurant food, to amazing pastries!"

Barnaby: "You just need to make a contract with me and become a Magical Girl!"

* * *

><p>Aira: "Get rid of the bunny!"<p>

Hikari: "But why!"

Tei: "Barnaby's very cute, mind you! He'll charm Sara into becoming a Magical Girl in no time!"

Cecil: "W-where did those maid outfits even come from!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Don't like it? They seem like the perfect idea to me."

Aira sighed and shook her head. "All that aside, this won't even work."

* * *

><p>She had just finished almost everything when she happily asked, "Can I have more?"<p>

A bit disturbed, everyone just gave her more. And then when she was done with that:

"Can I have more?"

* * *

><p>Aira: "You have no idea how bottomless that person's stomach is. Not to mention she'd want to take some home for her family."<p>

Hikari: "You're right, we probably wouldn't have enough money for that."

Everyone sighed as they racked their brains. After about ten minutes, Ms. Yamanaka spoke up. "What should we do, then?"

Aira shrugged. "I dunno about you, but I'm giving up right here. Tei's already fallen asleep, and Hikari's already bored. Me? Well, trust me when I say that provoking Sara any further's… not a good idea."

Hikari: "Why's that?"

Aira looked away as though she was recalling a nightmare. "You really don't want to see an angry Sara."

Ms. Yamanaka: "B-but…"

Aira bowed apologetically. "Sorry, Sawa-chan-sensei! But a no from me's a no. We should get home, too. Come on, Tei, wake up."

Ms. Yamanaka sighed when everybody but Cecil left. Cecil took a good look at their supervisor then, and how much she must really want to show that side of her. She leaned closer to her and offered an apparently ridiculous suggestion.

Ms. Yamanaka: "What! How could I possibly do that?"

Cecil looked determined, though. "Just try it."

* * *

><p>The next day after school, Sara found herself to be the first one in the clubroom. And being who she was, she took it as a time to get some cleaning done before the others arrive. While she was cleaning, she found an old album that apparently belonged to a past Light music Club. She found it in a box filled with other stuff that belonged to previous Light Music Clubs.<p>

The scary-looking people inside the album certainly weren't Houkago Tea Time. It was a death metal band called Death Devil. Although not really fond of metal, Sara was fond of memories, so she flipped through the pages until she noticed that one of the members looked a lot like Ms. Yamanaka.

"Ohh, what's that? Looks interesting," Sara heard Aira say when everybody else entered the clubroom.

Sara: "Hey, doesn't this person look a lot like Yamanaka-sensei?"

Aira examined the picture. "You're probably right."

Cecil: "Catherine?"

Hikari: "It really fits her!"

Cecil: (Is she that scary person because she's from a death metal band?)

Sara: "Oh. Where's Tei?"

Cecil: "She said she has work so she won't be coming today."

The door opened, and in came Ms. Yamanaka.

Sara: "Ah, Sensei. We were just talking about you."

The teacher looked surprised. "That album!"

Aira showed the picture of Catherine to Ms. Yamanaka. "Sawa-chan! Is this you?"

Ms. Yamanaka smiled awkwardly. "Yes, that's me when I was in the Light Music Club in this school."

Hikari: "Ohh. Death metal, huh?"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Sara-san!"

"Y-yes!" Sara answered back, a bit surprised at Ms. Yamanaka's odd tone of voice.

Ms. Yamanaka was blushing, something nobody really expected to happen. "Please wear a magical girl costume for me!"

* * *

><p>Well, Sara was a bit shocked when she was asked to do that, but in the end, it all worked out somehow. Maybe Sara heard some desperation or sincerity of sorts from Ms. Yamanaka, so she agreed in the end after some more lines of convincing.<p>

Although, she was only against it until she saw the costume. Her eyes twinkled eagerly when she saw it, and before everybody knew what happened, she was already in it.

Aira: "What's that? It looks more like a really fancy school uniform rather than a magical girl."

Hikari: "Oho? Ak*mi Homura's outfit really fits you, Sara."

Ms. Yamanaka: "I got something for everyone, too!"

Cecil: "Wait, what!"

Aira: "We never agreed to this! Right, Hikari!"

Hikari was already wearing one of them, the pink one. She was tying her hair up when she heard Aira. "Eh? What?"

Ms. Yamanaka, on the other hand, was already stalking the other two with an evil look in her eyes.

Despite protests, everyone ended up as a magical girl. Sara was admiring her simple-looking costume, Hikari was used to cosplaying. The other two weren't so fortunate, though. Aira was wearing the caped turquoise-themed one, and she wasn't so enthusiastic about having her shoulders revealed. Cecil was blushing and trying to hide in her gold-themed costume.

Ms. Yamanaka looked like the happiest person in the world. "Now all of you have been baptized into the Light Music Club!"

Hikari: "Too bad Tei's not here to see this."

Sara: "She'd probably be jealous."

Hikari: "I know! Let's take a picture of everyone! Get together, guys! Hey! Don't run away, Cecil!"

After sending the picture, Hikari was grinning, expecting to have finally cracked the tough Tei.

Aira: "Oh! Here comes the reply."

It was a picture of Tei as a magical girl herself. Barnaby was even there.

Tei's message: "Glad you're all having fun, but so am I! (*゜▽゜ノノ゛ ."

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I don't own Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica. I wouldn't want to own Kyubey, anyway.<p>

Yeah. About that midterm? I'd rather not talk about it. Anyway! Here was a chapter about Sawako. Sort of. I guess. It was pretty important for Cecil too. I got closer to the K-ON tune with this chapter, but it wasn't as good as I would like it to be. That may be because I sort of pulled this one out of nowhere. I really wanted a beach episode, but then I'd just be following with the anime again if I did that. Sawa-chan's "probably" pretty OOC there. I do think this is how she would be four years after the anime ended, though. She had been spoiled to it by the Light Music Club for about seven years, after all, and then suddenly, everybody's gone and she has to deal with entirely new girls without anyone who knows about Catherine around. This fic is assuming that Sumire and Nao weren't able to recruit underclassmen in their years after Azusa, Ui, and Jun graduated. (And of course, that Sawa-chan never got a boyfriend.) Anyway, I hope you had fun reading! Next episode, summer! Let's take that as a sign for something.


	5. Episode 5: Summer!

Keion!

Episode 5: Summer!

* * *

><p>It was summer. Cicadas were chirping loudly. The sun just glared at everything underneath it. The clouds were all gone, as though they too took a break from the heat. Hence, there was nothing to assuage the sun's anger. The fierce heat was to be expected. That never stopped anyone from complaining about it, though.<p>

But! The Light Music Club's clubroom had an air conditioner! The ultimate equipment used by the world to battle against the heat!

If only it weren't broken.

Cecil: (It's hot.)

After going through the song Sara wrote for the cultural festival once, Hikari slumped down to her drums. Aira fell to her butt as she slumped down to the floor. Cecil fell to her knees as she slumped down to the floor.

Hikari: "Playing drums in this heat is suicide."

Cecil: (It's so hot.)

Aira: "Geez, tell me about it. Why is it so hot?"

Cecil: (I'm melting.)

Tei was tapping on the keyboard cheerfully as though nothing was wrong.

Cecil: (Why are Japanese summers so hot!)

Hikari: "Stupid, broken aircon!"

Aira: "Stupid, run-down aircon!"

"Stupid, useless aircon!" Tei chimed in, just for giggles, apparently.

Cecil: (So noisy.)

Sara, who was writing something on the tables and not standing with everyone else (since she insisted that they should practice without the vocals for at least one run), looked at them. "The repair man will be here tomorrow."

Aira: "That's not soon enough!"

Hikari: "I'm melting into sludge, and then I'll become a slime monster and terrorize everyone!"

Sara: "If you clear your mind, even fire becomes ice!"

Tei smiled as she looked down under the table to see Sara's feet in a bucket of cool water.

Cecil: (It's too hot!)

Sara: "Come on, have a go at it again."

Aira: "Well, Ms. President, why don't you join us this time?"

Sara smiled. "Don't be silly, I'm still writing a new song for the cultural festival."

Cecil: "IT'S HOOOT!"

When the normally silent Cecil yells (in English, too), everyone pays attention. Hikari jumped up in surprise, Aira fell to her back, and Tei stopped tapping on the keyboard. Cecil punched a fist into the air, her expression wild.

Cecil: "The beach! The beach's calling to me!"

Hikari: "The heat's made Cecil snap!"

Aira: "Beach? The beach!"

Tei: "That's a wonderful idea!"

Sara smiled knowingly before looking back to her song. "Well, it's summer break starting tomorrow. The beach sounds good."

Hikari: "Awesome! I was hoping for this, so my dad reserved us a vacation home!"

Aira, Tei, Sara: "Vacation home?"

* * *

><p>When they got there, they came upon an expensive-looking house.<p>

Cecil, Aira, Tei, Sara: (It's huge!)

Hikari: "Kotobuki-san wanted to give us the largest, but I insisted on the smallest, since we're not exactly a huge group."

Aira: (The smallest?)

Tei: (It's as big as my house.)

Sara: (It must be lovely to live in such a humongous place!)

"Your family's quite rich, aren't they, Hikari?" Cecil asked as they entered the house, Aira and Tei already darting everywhere, admiring all the expensive stuff with different tones of ohhs and ahhs.

"Quite!" Hikari answered with a proud expression on her face. "We're nothing like Kotobuki-san, though. It's not like we'd be anything without them in a first place."

Aira: "But still… try imagining Hikari as a high-class lady."

Everyone took a moment to do that, and then Aira and Tei burst out laughing. Cecil was trying hard not to do the same. Even Sara was chuckling softly.

"How rude!" Hikari retorted, then flipped her hair. "I can be an elegant lady if I wanted to," she said in an elegant tone of voice, her expression and smile completely different. She even seemed to sparkle. A small cough. "Good day, Ai-kun. I hope we'll be able to have a wonderful time together today!"

Aira: (She wasn't kidding!)

Tei: (H-hika-chan!)

Cecil: (Who is this person!)

Sara giggled. "She's like a tiny Yamanaka-sensei."

Hikari: "Hey! I resent that!"

* * *

><p>"And check this out!" Hikari said eagerly as she opened a door to a nice-looking music room. It even had amps and a whole drum set. One of the walls was pretty much a window, and the sun shone through there into the room. "We're staying here for two days, so we should use one for practice!"<p>

Aira: "Ehhh?"

Tei: "I thought we were here to cool down!"

Sara: "Come on, stop complaining. The school festival isn't that far away once summer break's done, you know."

Cecil: "I agree! We should use this time to practice!"

Aira: "You're the one who suggested the beach!"

Sara: "Now, now. We should choose which day's for which."

Tei: "I vote to play today!"

Aira: "I'm with Tei!"

Cecil: "Practice."

Sara: "I guess I'll vote to practice."

Everybody looked to Hikari.

Hikari: "Practice!"

Aira: "Hikari!"

Tei: "Hika-chan!"

Aira: "An unexpected betrayal!"

Tei: "How could you do this to us!"

Hikari: "Hahaha. We can use the last day for the beach. That way the last thing we would've done is have fun."

Sara: "Ohhh. So you're the type who saves their favorites for last?"

Hikari: "Well, don't breaks feel much more relaxing when they're after doing some hard work?"

Tei: "She has a point!"

Aira: "Alright! We'll practice all day and all night!"

Cecil: "We're doing that much!"

* * *

><p>All day and all night was what Aira said, but they only lasted until about noon. "I'm tired," Aira whined as she slumped down to the floor. Tei was already lying on the cool floor, asleep without a worry in the world. Even Cecil seemed tired, although she did her best not to show it.<p>

"I'm beat, too," Hikari said. "Should we have dinner now?" she asked Sara.

Aira: "Dinner!"

Sara smiled and nodded. "Sure. I think we've done more than enough practice for the day."

Cecil: "It was rather productive too. You even got to finish another song, Sara-san!"

Hikari: "Hey, Tei. Wake up. We're going to make dinner."

Aira: "Alright! Let's go for barbeque! It's summer, after all!"

The sun was not far from setting when the Hikari and Sara finally came back from shopping for the ingredients. Cecil was waiting patiently with Aira, while Tei was asleep.

Hikari: "We're back!"

Aira: "Yeeess! Barbeque, barbeque!"

Sara: "I know you're really hungry, but don't eat the meat raw. Come on, let's all prepare it together so it goes faster."

Like Sara said, it didn't take them long to prepare. But with most of the others playing around it ended up such that it was Sara who did most of the work with some help from Cecil. Now they only had to wait for the grill to cook the meat, but even then it didn't take long before Aira and Hikari started playing with the skewers, Sara scolding them before it went far.

After a while, finally, the barbeque was ready to eat. Everybody got their shares while Cecil watched the grill cook up the others.

Tei: "Cecirru, give me more meat!"

Aira: "Meat!"

Sara: "You should eat your vegetables too, hey."

Hikari sighed happily. "Ahh, I'm full."

Aira: "Already?"

Hikari: "Unlike you and Tei, I'm not a huge eater."

"Ohhh? Maybe that's why you're so small?" Tei looked innocent, but her crossed arms were pushing up her chest.

Hikari: "You picking a fight!"

Cecil was smiling at the bickering when Sara came up to her. "It's my turn to watch it. You should eat, Cecil." Cecil shook her head, the smile not disappearing.

Cecil: "I'm fine, I like doing this."

Sara: "But aren't you hungry?"

Cecil laughed softly. "Not really."

Sara looked at her, came closer, grabbed a piece of meat from her bowl with her chopsticks, and pointed it at Cecil. "Say ahh," she said with a smile.

Ceil blushed. "Geez, Sara-san. I'm not a kid," she protested as she made a move to grab it with her hand.

Sara moved the chopsticks out of the way. "Ahh!"

"Fine then," Cecil gave up. She awkwardly opened her mouth, "Ahhh," but it was Tei's mouth who stole the meat from Sara's chopsticks.

Tei brought her hands to her cheeks, beaming like she was in some sort of heaven. "Ahhh, so good!"

Sara: "Hey, Tei!"

Tei laughed. "Kidding, kidding." She took meat from her bowl and was going to make Cecil go "ahhh" herself when she noticed the teary-eyed blonde. Then she panicked. "I-I'm sorry! Here! Have all of mine! I'll watch the grill for you!" She turned to Sara. "Sara-san! Feed her everything!"

Aira: "Geez, it's so chaotic."

Hikari was smirking.

The sun was already gone when they all finished eating. Since she insisted, Sara was the only one cleaning the mess.

Aira: "Ahhh! That was so good!"

Hikari: "Having barbeque with rice was a good idea!"

Tei: "H-hey, Cecil, are you still mad?"

Cecil: "Hmmmmmmph."

Sara: "Come on, Cecil. She didn't know she'd make you cry."

Cecil: "I-I wasn't crying, though."

Hikari: "Cecil-chuwann, you're such a kid."

Cecil: "Shut it! I don't want to hear that from you!"

Tei: "I'd let you borrow Nyanko for the week."

Cecil: "You're forgiven!"

Hikari: (Is she that easy to control?)

* * *

><p>Aira: "So! What should we do next?"<p>

Hikari: "I know! Should we tell scary stories!"

Aira, Cecil: "No!"

Tei: "That sounds fun!"

Hikari chuckled darkly. All the light seemed to go off then, and suddenly there was a flash light underneath the drummer's face. "Now this is just a rumor, but in Ikebukuro, I saw that black motorcycle."

Tei: "Black motorcycle?"

Hikari nodded. "Yeah. Haven't you heard about it? It's all the talk in Shinjuku and Ikebukuro." She coughed. "Anyway, the driver of that black motorcycle without headlights. An idiot, right? Well, maybe. Maybe that may be the case, if they were human…"

Aira gulped.

"I said the motorcycle had no headlights, right? It didn't sound like a motorcycle, either. None of that 'drrr!' No, it was completely silent. Occasionally, though, it would whinny like a horse." Hikari smirked. "They say the black rider's like a death god. Whenever it showed, it was heading towards a dying person. All gates and manner of locks are useless against the black rider, since they open on their own when they see him.

"When one happens to see the black rider, the rider stops by him and splashes a tub of blood on him.

"Well, the thing is, there's nothing above the rider's neck." Hikari closed her eyes. "And despite not having a head, he can still move."

Cecil was shivering, and Tei looked interested.

"And then, from the shadows spilling out from the neck, the black rider pulls out a scythe!"

Cecil: "Stop it, I don't want to hear any more of it!"

Aira: "I-I'm with Cecil."

Hikari: "Aw, fine then. And it was just getting fun."

Sara had finished cleaning, and had been with them for some time now. "Ah. I know a good one. Should I tell it?"

Hikari, Aira, Cecil: "No!"

Tei: "Hika-chan, you were the one proposing the scary stories."

Sara went on. "Well, it's this place. It used to be a place where they keep criminals. You see how pretty our spot is, with that view to the ocean? It used to be an execution ground," she said with a low voice.

Aira: "Y-you're just making that up!"

Sara shook her head. "It was a summer's night just like this one when a woman who was to be executed begged that she be buried next to her loved one, not tossed into the ocean like everyone else." She sighed. "But the graveyard her loved one was in was full, and her wish couldn't be granted."

Hikari was backing away slowly, but didn't dare bolt. Aira and Cecil gulped, and even Tei looked gripped.

Sara closed her eyes. "And so, she was executed.

"But ever since then, something truly frightening started to happen." Sara pointed to the nearby forest. "Ever since then, when a couple enters that forest, a woman in an immaculate white kimono would appear from nowhere, and she'd ask them this: 'Would you take me to where my beloved is?'

Sara looked at everybody sharply. "But you must never go with her."

Tei: "W-why?"

Sara: "Because you will be…. Ah, Hikari, there's a mosquito on your arm."

Hikari: "KYAAAAAAAAAAAAGGHH!"

That sudden scream from Hikari made everybody jump, and then Cecil started screaming too.

Hikari flailed her arms. "Kill it! Kill it! Kill it!"

Aira was shaking as she neared Hikari. "Alright, geez! Calm the heck down!" She slapped the mosquito, and all was well.

Sara laughed. "Not so hot anymore, is it?"

Tei: "I want to laugh too, but somehow, I can't bring out the energy to do it."

Aira: "Yooouu! I'm going to tickle you for this!"

Sara: "Go away!"

Cecil: "I can't sleep anymore. How am I going to sleep tonight?"

Sara: "Alright! Let's have a courage test!"

Hikari: "Are you serious!"

Sara just laughed.

Tei: "Ai-kun, what's up with her?"

Aira scratched her nose and looked away. "Sara? She's… sleepy."

Cecil: "I can't sleep like this; I won't be able to sleep."

Hikari: "Sleepy? But it's like… 9:00."

* * *

><p>The forest was dark. The summer was hot, but she just felt so cold. It was so silent; there weren't even any cicadas. Occasionally, an owl would hoot loudly and make her jump.<p>

Hikari yelped and backed away. "A-Ai-kun, let's not do this!"

Aira: "Hikari, please loosen your grip. You're hurting my hand."

Then a sudden strong gust suddenly blew, making the leaves rustle loudly. They both shivered.

Aira: "B-but you're right. We should head back; it might get dangerous."

Hikari nodded energetically in agreement.

When they turned back, though, there was something. A pale-looking woman in a white kimono amidst the darkness; there was a talisman covering her face. Hikari and Aira froze.

The woman was looking at them. It walked closer, but the pair was too afraid to move. And with a disturbingly gentle voice, she asked: "Would you take me to where my beloved is?" The gust of wind blew again, showing what was underneath the talisman… to show nothing. There was nothing above the woman's neck.

Hikari woke up, sweating all over. There was a smiling face with a piece of paper covering the eyes. Before Hikari could scream, though, a finger went over her lips. The smiling face signaled for her to be quiet, then took off the mask to show Tei's face.

"T-Tei!" Hikari whispered angrily. Tei was struggling very hard not to burst out laughing.

Aira grumbled. "Would you two be quiet?" It was hard for her to sleep in the heat, doubled by the Cecil who was suddenly on her futon.

Sara, on the other hand, was sleeping peacefully.

* * *

><p>When morning came, only Sara and Tei were wearing smiles.<p>

"What's wrong? Weren't you able to sleep well last night?" Sara asked all the sleepy faces as she was preparing breakfast.

Aira, Hikari: "Guess whose fault was it?"

Tei beamed. "You guys lack energy! We hit the beach today, remember?"

Cecil jerked up, stood, and left the room.

Sara: "HEY! Don't change into your swimsuit already! We're having breakfast first!"

With the promise of the beach enforcing everyone, breakfast passed by quickly. A handful of short showers (that Sara forced everyone to take) later, swimsuits were on. Tei went first, and she was wearing a revealing pink two-piece bikini, her hair down.

Aira: "Ohh, as expected from a model. Tei looks great."

Sara: "I agree, I agree."

Cecil: "It feels different without her twin tails."

Hikari: "You look like a different person entirely."

Tei smiled proudly and flipped her hair. "Then, how about Cecil? You go next!" Cecil changed to a frilly green one-piece swimsuit, her back open.

Aira: "Cecil's not bad herself!"

Sara: "Why did I never see this before? You're cute, Cecil!"

Tei: "Oho! You've got a nice figure, Cecirru!"

Hikari nodded. "I agree with them!"

Cecil blushed. "T-thanks," she replied awkwardly. Aira was next, who changed to a simple-looking black-and-white two-piece with short shorts.

Tei: "What's that? She looks unexpectedly good."

Sara laughed. "That's rude, Tei."

Cecil was nodding approvingly.

Hikari vision: sparkles

Aira bowed, embarrassed. Hikari was next, who changed to a fresh-looking one-piece swimsuit that looked closer to a dress. It was mostly white, with some accents of pink. Then she looked at Cecil, then Tei. Then her chest. There was a short moment of despair on her face.

Cecil's attention perked up. "Cute."

Aira nodded. "Cute. Like a kid."

Tei was pushing up her chest. "Cute!"

Hikari: "You… you're really looking for a fight, aren't you?"

Sara: "You look lovely, Hikari!"

Hikari looked to Sara with eyes twinkling with gratitude. "Sara-san!"

Sara was next, and she changed… well, she apparently had a white bikini, but she also had a white shirt on, covering everything up top. Everyone looked unamused.

Sara: "What?"

Hikari: "What's with the shirt?"

Cecil looked at Sara curiously.

Tei tilted her head. "You can't possibly be thinking they're small, are you?" She gestured at Hikari while she said this.

Hikari: "HEY."

Aira laughed. "Come on, what's there to hide? I've seen everythin—WOAH okay, fine! I'll leave it alone!"

* * *

><p>The beach they came to was a place no one could possibly resist. The sand was white, the water was as clean as saltwater could be, and the sun was shining brightly. The scenery was gorgeous, and Sara admired what she saw, taking out the camera.<p>

The others weren't as appreciative though, and immediately ran towards the playtime they've been craving since yesterday, Aira and Tei rolling on the sand. Sara didn't mind setting up the umbrella by herself and was content to just take pictures of everybody.

Tei and Aira were playing with a beach ball, while Hikari was just floating around, only to be foiled unexpectedly by Cecil. That easily led to an all-out water-slapping fight between the two.

Then Hikari brought out a water gun, shot Cecil, and then shot at Sara's direction. Sara yelped in surprise. "Come here! Sara-san!" Then she shot again, only to be splashed in the face by Cecil.

Sara sighed, then stood up. "Fine, fine." Another shot, then a beach ball that almost hit her head! "I'm coming!" she yelled.

As Sara walked closer to the sea, Tei neared her. "You're not taking off the shirt?"

"I can swim with the shirt," Sara answered, looking almost confused by Tei's question.

Tei grinned. "You can't swim like that!" she said, grabbing Sara's hands. "Banzai!" Shirt off!

It didn't take long before Sara started playing around with the others.

While Hikari and Aira were racing towards a rock (a race that neither of them won), Cecil, Tei, and Sara explored the beach for random things. Like the starfish Cecil was holding up, or the odd-looking seaweed Tei found.

Sometime later came watermelon-smacking time. Since there was only one watermelon, the honor of whacking it blindfolded was given to Cecil, who ended up almost accidentally whacking everybody else before Aira took the stick and the blindfold and did the job herself.

Playing with sand also happened; suddenly Hikari was an architect and Sara was an artist.

Later on were popsicles, and more swimming. The one who could hold their breath the longest was Tei. The girls also had this brilliant idea of playing tag in the water, something which Hikari and Aira, the most athletic of them, dominated. The slowest swimmer was Tei, whom Hikari attempted to make fun of by making a joke about the weight of her breasts (note "attempted"; this only ended up in another water-splashing fight).

Cecil also taught them how to surf, something only Sara was able to learn.

It was already sunset by the time they stopped playing. Lying on the beach, Hikari exhaled loudly. "I swallowed seawater."

Aira was lying next to her. "Ahh, that was fun, that was fun."

Cecil, who was sitting down next to Hikari, nodded in agreement.

Tei and Sara were still in the water.

Aira: "And those two are still playing around."

It wasn't for a long while, though, and soon enough they were all sitting down on the shore watching the sunset. Everyone was silent as they watched. The waves rolled gently through the sand, and the sleepy sun gave the whole sea a golden hue that Sara couldn't resist smiling at. She took a deep breath.

"_I wake up to the golden waves at the shore_  
>"<em>With a feeling of longing<em>

"_In those precious memories_  
>"<em>Etched onto the sky<em>  
>"<em>Your hand reaches out for mine<em>  
>"<em>Your hand that I long for, I will always grab it<em>

"_Our fingers intertwine, grasp each other tight_  
>"<em>The sky shines in that gold hue<em>

"_The distant clouds call me in their song_  
>"<em>As I grasp your hand, a myriad of gold light blasts through the heavens<em>  
>"<em>I wake up to the golden waves at the shore<em>  
>"<em>With a feeling of longing"<em>

The silence that followed was appreciative. Everyone closed their eyes, feeling the wind as they waited for the sun to sleep. That was the plan, until someone's stomach grumbled, and everyone laughed.

Sara: "Let's have dinner."

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I don't own Durarara! Or anything else I might have referenced.<p>

It took me a long time, but this was fun to write. Maybe because there's the fact that I just love summer and beach episodes. I wish I could've added fireworks and a bath scene, but I think I'll save that for the inevitable future another-beach-episode that will come someday. This chapter's long enough as it is. Somewhere along the way, I was considering drawing the story as a 4koma instead, but I realized I might not have enough patience for such a thing. Well, I did say that, but I'm still tempted to do it. Drawing aside, the more comedic side of the story would be easier told in comic strips. Besides, drawing /is/ fun. (Watch me attempt to take the light novel approach.) The song in the end feels cheesy to me, but I've never really written songs before. That and I have no idea how it would sound in Japanese (since the series is Japanese, durr) so I'm just pretending the words sound good in the Japanese language. Anyway, all that aside, I hope you had fun reading! Look forward to the next chapter!

NaNoWriMo? What is that? Can I eat it?


	6. Episode 6: Natsu Rock Fest!

Keion!

Episode 6: Natsu Rock Fest!

* * *

><p>Middle of summer vacation.<p>

Sara was cooking dinner with her sister when she got the message that they were all meeting up at Tei's to discuss something the next day. She texted Aira back to ask what it was, but the bassist had no idea either. It was probably another summer outing. Sara chuckled. It was nice to have these every now and then, but she hoped nobody forgot about their summer homework.

Sara sipped the miso soup her sister Yuka was making. "Is it good?" Yuka asked nervously.

Sara smiled and nodded. "Perfect."

Yuka smiled widely. "Dinner's ready!" she called to everybody else.

* * *

><p>The next day in Tei's room, Aira and Hikari were playing videogames, while Tei was just smiling.<p>

Cecil: "So? What are we doing here?"

Aira: "Yeah, you never told me either."

Hikari: "We'll wait till Sawa-chan comes, then we'll talk about what's happening."

Sara: "Let me guess. We're all going out again for the summer."

Tei wagged her finger. "That's just part of it! We're going somewhere a bit more special this time."

Ms. Yamanaka: "And that is… this year's Summer Festival!"

Hikari: "Yes!"

Tei: "The mountains!"

Cecil: "Summer Festival?"

"It's a live event where lots of bands perform on huge outdoor stages," Aira explained to the foreign exchange student. Then she jabbed a finger at Ms. Yamanaka's direction. "And like, where did you come from!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Can I have some tea, too, Sara-san?"

"Okay," Sara nodded before she got up like there was nothing unusual.

Cecil: "This might be a good idea, then. It'll be a good learning experience for us."

Aira looked up to the ceiling. "I'd love to go, too, but how are we going to get tickets?"

Hikari and Tei laughed in a… high-class way. "That's where we come in!" Hikari said. "With Sawa-chan's and Kotobuki-san's help, we have tickets, too!"

Cecil and Aira ohh'd and clapped their hands.

"You know, this is great and all," Sara said as she entered with Ms. Yamanaka's tea, "but I hope you guys aren't forgetting about the summer homework."

Hikari: "I'm already done."

Cecil: "I'm still doing them, but I don't think there should be a problem."

Tei, Aira: "We have homework?"

* * *

><p>Early morning a few days after, they were all to meet at the bus stop. It was still pretty dark. Hikari thought she was the first one there, until she saw Tei sleeping on her bag. "Don't just sleep out here," she said, poking the pianist's cheek.<p>

Cecil came next, followed by Ms. Yamanaka. "Good morning," Ms. Yamanaka greeted.

Hikari waved at them. "Tei's sleeping."

Cecil: "Of course she is."

Hikari: "Where're Sara and Aira? The bus is here."

Tei suddenly woke up. "They're here."

Aira: "Hey!"

Sara: "Sorry we're late!"

"Ohh. Didn't expect Sara of all people to be late," she commented as they got on the bus. "Did you sleep late?"

"No, no, it wasn't me. When I went to Aira's house, she was still asleep, so I had to help her get ready," Sara said. Aira looked away, embarrassed.

Hikari: (I swear, you two are a couple.) "Did you sleep late, Ai-kun?"

Aira: "Couldn't help it. I was sorta excited, after all. Music all day! And this is my first time to an outdoor concert!"

Cecil laughed softly. "I know what you mean."

Tei probably would've said something along the lines of "Cecirru, you're such a kid," but…

Hikari: "So? What about this person?"

Aira: "Do you really have to wonder? Tei's always asleep."

The trip to the first stop at a service area was pretty uneventful. Tei slept the whole way; Hikari was writing a story on her laptop; Cecil was reading a light novel Hikari lent her; Sara was listening to music (and eventually fell asleep); Aira was reading manga; and Ms. Yamanaka seemed lost in her thoughts, there was a smile on her face as she looked out the window.

After the break at the service area, Tei was completely awake after some ice cream and was chatting with Ms. Yamanaka; Hikari was watching a movie on her laptop with Cecil; Sara and Aira were also chatting with each other.

And then finally, their destination! The mountains should've been cooler, but with the amount of people there today, it wasn't possible in a summer day.

Hikari: "S-so many people."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Alright! No more being slow! From this moment on, it's a warzone!"

Tei: "Sawa-chan, you're exaggerating!"

Sara: "Have you been here before, Tei?"

Tei nodded. "About two times before this one. It's pretty fun."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Come on, come on, let's hurry to the campground so we don't run out of flat ground."

It was too late, of course. "Damn it, why does this always happen!"

Sara: "There're fewer people on the sloped ground, so I think it should be fine."

Ms. Yamanaka and Tei set up the tent. Sara immediately entered the tent, excited. Everyone looked to Aira.

Aira: "It's probably the first time she's had an opportunity to be in a tent."

* * *

><p>Their first stop once they went inside (and after Ms. Yamanaka showed everyone the map) was the Fire Stage, the main stage. It could hold 40,000 people and was on a gradual slope, so that even the people at the back could see the stage without any problems.<p>

Before they went, Ms. Yamanaka said she was going to the Thunder Stage, but not without saying: "Make sure you guys are at White Garden at around 2:00; I have a surprise for everyone there." Everyone nodded and made their way to the Fire Stage.

It was to be expected, but there were definitely a lot of people in the Fire Stage. The band on the stage was apparently called "Kamakiri", and their instruments suddenly flared, catching the whole audience by surprise, and then they quickly turned it into a huge mass of cheering and screaming, hands flailing all over the air. It was a contagious atmosphere, and soon enough Tei, Aira, Hikari, Cecil, and Sara were in with everybody else's cheering. Kamakiri's song was blasting loudly through the place.

Aira: "I really like this band!"

Cecil: "Their guitarist is awesome!"

Once Kamakiri finished their performance, everybody followed Aira's lead on where to go next. The band on the Thunder Stage didn't fail to impress the girls either, and though there were less people, the cheering didn't feel any different. They had lunch next, chatting over yakisoba close to the stream.

A girl with brown hair and frizzy twintails noticed them, and came closer. "Hey, are you guys from Sakura High?"

Hikari: "How did you know?"

The girl grinned. "Just a hunch."

Another girl, with a lighter shade of brown hair and a small ponytail, came up to them. "Do you know them, Jun-chan?"

Jun: "Hi! I'm Suzuki Jun, and this is Hirasawa Ui. We used to be in the Light Music Club back in Sakura High."

Ui smiled and bowed. "Hello!"

Sara smiled and bowed back. "I'm Kazumiya Sara. This is Michiru Aira, Masayuki Tei, Matsuoka Hikari, and Cecil Jordan. We're the current Light Music Club," she introduced.

Aira, Tei, Hikari, Cecil: "Hello!"

Jun: "Cecirru?"

Tei: "A kindred spirit!"

Ui: "Can we join you?"

Sara: "Sure!"

Aira: "More food's always welcome!"

It didn't take long for all of them to get friendly with each other. Tei almost seemed unaware of the fact that the two were old enough to be their teachers. While everybody was chatting with Jun about the past Music Club and other related things, Sara was chatting with Ui about things that were closer to home economics and caring for their respective siblings.

Jun: "Our band's name is Wakaba Girls! I'm the bassist! Ui's the second guitarist. We also had two underclassmen, Sumire and Nao. Sumire's on the drums, and Nao's on the… computer?"

Hikari: (Sumire? Could that possibly be the same Sumire as Kotobuki-san's maid?)

Hikari: "She creates music with the computer?"

Jun: "Yes! Like, what should we even call that?"

Cecil: "So who's your lead guitarist?"

Jun: "Our lead guitarist is Azusa, but she's occupied with something else right now, so she's not here with us."

Aira: "Jun-senpai! I could totally use some bass lessons!"

Ui: "So for those kinds of dishes, you do this…"

Sara was nodding excitedly as she eagerly listened to Ui's tips on cooking.

After a while, Sara and Ui fixed up their picnic site and they all went to the White Garden stage to meet up with Ms. Yamanaka since it was 2:00.

Tei: "By the way, what band's playing here?"

Jun: "Oh? Didn't Sawako-sensei tell you?"

Ui smiled. "Houkago Tea Time!"

Sara and Aira seemed to shine in excitement then, and ran ahead of everyone.

Hikari: "Houkago Tea Time?"

Jun winked. "The Music Club of Sakura High," she claimed, emphasizing the "the", as Ui went after Sara and Aira, Cecil following.

The crowd, smaller than the ones in the stages they were in before, was already cheering when they got there.

Ms. Yamanaka: "Everyone! You're here! They're just about to start."

Houkago Tea Time consisted of the five girls Aira and Sara saw back four years ago in the Sakura High Festival. They were wearing stylized versions of their high school uniforms. "Everyone! Hello! We're Houkago Tea Time!" the girl with short brown hair greeted loudly.

The crowd may have been smaller than that of the Thunder Stage's, but to Sara's ears, they were no less loud as Houkago Tea Time started up their first song, the smiling brown-haired girl yelling "Fuwa Fuwa Time!"

"_When I'm looking at you, my heart is always going DOKI DOKI_  
>"<em>My wavering feelings are fluffy fluffy like marshmallows<em>  
>"<em>The view of your face from the side, always working so hard-<em>  
>"<em>Even if I'm looking at it all the time, you don't notice me<em>  
>"<em>Even though the distance between us can be shrunken if we're in a dream<em>

"_Ah, dear God, do me a favor_  
>"<em>Please give us our own Dream Time<em>  
>"<em>Hugging my favorite bunny, I say good night, too, tonight <em>

"_Fuwa fuwa time, fuwa fuwa time, fuwa fuwa time_

The bassist that inspired Aira to be a bassist was a beautiful looking lady with long straight black hair, much like a princess'. She sang the next lines. Everyone in the audience was clapping with the song as Houkago Tea Time played.

"_My heart goes ZUKI ZUKI at your unexpected gesture today_  
>"<em>I read too deeply into your nonchalant smile and over heat!<em>  
>"<em>Your serious face that I saw on some other day-<em>  
>"<em>Even if I close my eyes, it appears<em>  
>"<em>Because it's okay if it's a dream, I want our own Sweet time<em>

"_Ah, dear God, why?_  
>"<em>Is the Dream night as painful as I fall in love?<em>  
>"<em>I took out my treasured teddy bear; will I be all right tonight?<em>

"_If I muster a little more courage_  
>"<em>And talk naturally<em>  
>"<em>Will something change?<em>  
>"<em>That's how I feel, but…<em>

"_(But that's the hardest thing_  
>"<em>What to do about a chance to chat?<em>  
>"<em>Heck, it's totally not natural to be thinking about a plan at that point in time<em>  
>"<em>Ah, enough already, I'm gonna sleep, I'm gonna sleep, I'm gonna sleep!)<em>

The next verses were sung by both of the vocalists.

"_Ah, dear God, do me a favor_  
>"<em>Please give me a Miracle Time for just once!<em>  
>"<em>If I can easily talk to you, then afterwards…I'll somehow do it<em>

"_Fuwa fuwa time, fuwa fuwa time, fuwa fuwa time"_

A loud applause, and the song finished. The lead guitarist, the brown-haired girl, took the mic. "Thank you! Once again, we're Houkago Tea Time. We've been together since high school in our small Light Music Club." She seemed to be enjoying herself and looked so happy, Sara thought. "Let me introduce the members.

"This is Mio-chan on bass," she introduced the girl with long black hair and a light purple parka. The audience cheered with fangirls, and Mio just blushed as she nodded her head.

Mio: "Hello. Thank you for seeing our first concert in Sumer Fest. Getting here wasn't easy, but… we're going forward!"

Yui: "Mio-chan is cool, mature, and dependable, but she's actually pretty shy. She actually had a fanclub back in high school!"

Aira: "My idol!"

Hikari: "She's so ladylike compared to you!"

Aira: "Shut up!"

"Next, we have Mugi-chan on keyboard!" Yui gestured towards the blond girl on the keyboard with cute eyebrows and a very eager expression. More cheering from the crowd.

Hikari gasped. "It's Kotobuki-san!"

Sara: "That's the Kotobuki-san you're always talking about?"

Mugi: "Everyone, good afternoon! Thank you so much for listening to our performance. This is so much fun!"

Yui: "Mugi-chan's kind, gentle, fuzzy and fluffy. She makes very good tea!"

Hikari: (Fuzzy?)

Cecil: (Fluffy?)

Tei: (What wonderful words to describe a person!)

"Next is Azunyan on guitar!" Yui gestured towards the small girl with black hair and long twin tails. More cheering from the crowd.

Cecil: (Azunyan?)

Azusa: "Um, I'm Nakano Azusa. Hello, everyone."

Jun, Ui: "Azusa!"

Yui: "Azunyan was the only junior we got in the club, and she's a really good guitarist. I learn guitar from her, too."

Tei was looking at Azusa with a smile, then at Hikari. Nobody saw this smile though, so Hikari was saved from the confusion.

"And then we have Ricchan for drums!" Yui gestured towards the girl with short brown hair and a yellow headband holding up her bangs. More cheering from the crowd.

Ritsu: "Hi, everyone, and thank you for coming out to our concert today."

Yui: "Ricchan is always energetic; she was actually the president of the club back in high school."

Yui nodded. "Now, we'll move on to our next son—"

Mio: "Hey! You didn't introduce yourself!"

"Woah! You're right!" Yui bowed apologetically as the audience laughed. "And finally, I'm Yui on guitar. I love cute things and yummy things."

Ui looked at Sara excitedly. "That's my sister."

Ritsu: "She's pretty much what you see; always going at her own pace, always forgetful."

Mugi: "But she's always giving her best at what she loves."

Mio: "She shares her energy with all of us around her."

Azusa: "She's a very precious senpai to me."

The audience gave applause. "Woah! Déjà vu!" Yui exclaimed, looking at the band members.

Ritsu: "Come on, start the next song and go straight from there."

Yui nodded, and faced the crowd once more. Strumming her guitar, she yelled: "Cagayake! Girls!"

"_Chatting Now_  
>"<em>Serious and noisy Never Ending Girls' Talk<em>  
>"<em>I can't wait for the chime at the end of class<em>  
>"<em>Even if I'm late, leaving early is Non Non Non!<em>  
>"<em>With all my might, I Study After School<em>

"_My heart won't stop pounding; inside of my full-throttle mind_  
>"<em>I package up hopes, desires, and distress with ribbons<em>  
>"<em>We exchange plenty of news and type a New Type Version<em>  
>"<em>Into photo booth albums forbidden to guys, into diaries where we wrote about love<em>

"_If I shorten my skirt by 2cm, I'll jump_  
>"<em>Farther than yesterday, an octave higher than the day before yesterday<em>

"_Jumping Now_  
>"<em>Serious and pretty Never Ending Girls' Life<em>  
>"<em>The days are truly live and have no waiting<em>  
>"<em>Even if I wake up early, going to bed early is Non Non Non!<em>  
>"<em>With my best, I'm Shouting loudly<em>  
>"<em>Serious and wonderful Never Ending Girls' Song<em>  
>"<em>Afternoon teatime is just the thing for me<br>_"_Even if it's unrequited love or a sound defeat, Here We Go!_  
>"<em>When we sing, we're Shining After School"<em>

Once that finished, Mio came forward as the audience was cheering loudly, and yelled: "Don't Say Lazy!" as Ritsu started banging the drums for the next song.

"_Please don't say "You are lazy"_  
>"<em>But the truth is, I'm crazy<em>  
>"<em>The swans, I'm sure<em>  
>"<em>Give flutter kicks at a place that you can't see<em>  
>"<em>I'm instinctively obedient and loyal; I'm well aware of that I get trifled with<em>  
>"<em>Plus my future's looking bright...<br>_"_So sometimes, I take a break_

"_If there's a shortcut, then it's the easy way out_  
>"<em>If I've got wings that can let me skip things, too, then that's the best<em>

"_Oh no, I broke a nail; so I repaired it with glue_  
>"<em>With just that, I feel kind of accomplished<em>  
>"<em>What's important is loving yourself<em>  
>"<em>If you don't love yourself, then no one else can love you<em>

"_Please don't say "You are lazy"_  
>"<em>But the truth is, I'm crazy<em>  
>"<em>A capable hawk, I'm sure<em>  
>"<em>Hides its picks at a place that you can't see<em>  
>"<em>I do my hardest to daydream; the reality drives me desperate<em>  
>"<em>Plus I'm still in mid-development...<em>  
>"<em>So unexpectedly, I go off-pitch"<em>

The end of the song was sudden, Ritsu suddenly changing rhythm. Yui then said loudly as her guitar blasted the next song through the amps: "Go! Go! Maniac!"

"_No way! I can't stop and I won't stop_  
>"<em>Singing so loud noon or night or morning<em>  
>"<em>Just doing the things I like the Girls Go Maniac<em>  
>"<em>That kind of melody and these kinds of lyrics<em>  
>"<em>I want to search for more and more<em>  
>"<em>Let's do it together and Chance Chance, let's show<em>  
>"<em>Jump Jump, our wishes<em>  
>"<em>Fun Fun, and say, Shout Shout, how we feel<em>  
>"<em>If we make a mistake let's rehearse, one more time!<em>

"_The microcosm that everyone carries called the heart_  
>"<em>Is tightly packed with human emotions and love<em>  
>"<em>I'm busy feeling down and getting excited<em>  
>"<em>Let's sing about these chaotic and fully loaded days<em>  
>"<em>Let's let it out<em>

Aira: "Ui-senpai, is your sister a rapper?"

Hikari: "Hahaha!"

"_Even during class I unconsciously research musicianship_  
>"<em>It's OK on the air to suddenly break the important mood with a shredding rhythm<em>  
>"<em>We'll communicate completely with our beats and minds and freely enjoy this<em>  
>"<em>Having fun is my victory<em>

"_Sorry! I can't hand it over and I won't hand it over_  
>"<em>Swinging around vertically, horizontally and diagonally<em>  
>"<em>Just making my favorite sounds the Girls Go Maniac<em>  
>"<em>That kind of groove and this kind of reverb<em>  
>"<em>I want to try it forever and ever<br>_"_Match your breathing with mine and Chase Chase, let's dream_  
>"<em>Break Break, of tomorrow<em>  
>"<em>Faith Faith, and swell up, Shake Shake, with strength<em>  
>"<em>If we get showered in cheers, we won't be able to forget about it, right?"<em>

The song ended the same way as the previous one did, and the next song starting pretty much the same way, too; it was as though the songs were connected. A sudden change of tune, and Mio said loudly: "Listen!"

"_It's deep deep, deep in my heart_  
>"<em>In the sanctuary where nothing echoed<em>  
>"<em>heat heat, it caught on fire, so I can't return<em>  
>"<em>It's shock shock, a shock that I send you<em>  
>"<em>Saying, "Hey, let's go everywhere together"<em>  
>"<em>rock rock, the storm and tsunami of sound lure each other<em>

"_A dropped pick, a broken stick_  
>"<em>Aren't problems at all<em>  
>"<em>We're within the same sound, and that's actually a miracle<em>

"_We'll sing, we'll sing as long as we feel like it_  
>"<em>No matter how quiet it is, it's our single song in the world<em>  
>"<em>I want to live with all my might<em>  
>"<em>So much that I won't regret it even if I die today<em>  
>"<em>Release, passionate<em>  
>"<em>This is a PRECIOUS Heart Beat of ours<em>  
>"<em>We'll sing, TREASURE Heart Beat<em>  
>"<em>Listen!"<em>

Again, a sudden change, and then Yui stepped up, "Utauyo! Miracle!"

"_I love everyone!_  
>"<em>It goes on forever. Lu La La Miracle Sing Time.<em>  
>"<em>I sing and sing to convey my love the best I can.<em>  
>"<em>Even if the song sucks, even if the lyrics are questionable,<em>  
>"<em>I want to deliver my soul with all my heart.<em>

"_What should I do? Things are being decided for me automatically._  
>"<em>I can't keep up with the schedule.<em>  
>"<em>Wanting to dream infinitely is an angry wave, we'll get together with a dash down the hallway<em>

"_Sorry for the bad manners! But regardless of how I look_  
>"<em>I get too immersed in playing. a 'sparkle'. Perhaps this is youth.<em>  
>"<em>ever ever…Forever Shine<em>

"_I really love it!_  
>"<em>The tension keeps rising. Lu La La Powerful Gig Time.<em>  
>"<em>The heart, the heart is a genius at searching for excitement<em>  
>"<em>Even if they go "Huh!", even if I keep messing up,<em>  
>"<em>I want to release my overflowing bravery.<em>  
>"<em>I'll start a tremolo, a flam will respond<em>  
>"<em>It's great, it's great. isn't it great to be high-spirited?<em>  
>"<em>Happiness is something we always feel in the present.<em>  
>"<em>Girls, live strong with your bare instincts.<em>

"_I love it, I love it, thank you for loving me_  
>"<em>I'll sing, I'll sing, I'll sing forever with love"<em>

Sara had to wonder how she had any voice left to cheer, as she just kept cheering when the song finished and Yui took the mic in her hands again. She shined with sweat and was probably tired, but Yui looked to Sara like the happiest person alive. "Thank you, everyone! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Mio: "The next song will be our last."

The audience awww'd.

Hikari: "Ehhhh?"

Aira: "No! I'll throw all my money away if I have to!"

Yui giggled. "We'd love to play more, but our time's almost up."

Sara: "Houkago Tea Time!"

Ui, Jun: "Houkago Tea Time!"

Hikari, Aira, Cecil, Tei: "Houkago Tea Time!"

Everyone: "Houkago Tea Time!"

Yui: "Once again, thank you, everyone!"

Sara: "Thanks for this experience!"

Mugi started playing the piano as Mio stepped up. "No, Thank You!" And then, suddenly, all their instruments flared through the place.

"_We all crowd up around the whiteboard,_  
>"<em>Scribbling down our unfettered wishes<em>  
>"<em>Even if the after-school bell echoes into the sunset,<em>  
>"<em>You can't diss the power to dream. Too bad for you!<em>

"_Let's sing with a louder, louder, louder voice_  
>"<em>Carry hope on your lips<em>  
>"<em>Every time you release words, they'll turn into light<em>  
>"<em>They're our fragments<em>

"_I don't need any memories_  
>"<em>Because I'm strongly, deeply, in love with "now"<em>  
>"<em>Getting immersed in my memories is a sweet, adult-like luxury<em>  
>"<em>But not yet… no thank you!<em>

As they played, Sara could see it. They were shining brightly. Not literally of course (sweat aside), but Houkago Tea Time was shining. Everyone's cheers, the band's music: Mio's singing; the beat of Ritsu's drums that everyone looked to for energy; the low sounds of Mio's bass that steadily guided everybody else's; the keys of Mugi's piano that showed the song's heart; and the guitars of Yui and Azusa that led everyone.

"_Let's sing more, more, more, even if our voices wither_  
>"<em>Praise this moment with your lips.<em>  
>"<em>We met each other because we held maps with the same route.<em>  
>"<em>They're our bonds<em>

"_NO, Thank You! I don't need any memories_  
>"<em>Because I'm strongly, deeply, in love with "now"<em>  
>"<em>Getting immersed in my memories is a sweet, adult-like luxury<em>  
>"<em>But not yet… no thank you!"<em>

* * *

><p>Back by the stream where they had lunch, they had set up a picnic spot and waited as Ui and Sara went to buy dinner.<p>

"That was amazing," Tei said dreamily.

Jun: "I've seen them perform more than once, but I think that was there best one yet."

Hikari: "I suddenly feel so pumped."

Aira: "We'll be practicing harder once school's back!"

Cecil nodded eagerly.

Sara: "Really? You'd all just be back to lazing around as soon the adrenaline runs out."

Tei and Hikari slumped down lazily. "She has a point."

Aira: "Hey! Act more spirited!"

Cecil: "Ah, Sara-san."

Ms. Yamanaka: "Welcome back."

"We're back," Ui and Sara said.

Ui: "We bought takoyaki."

Jun, Aira: "Takoyaki!"

Some time soon as they were having takoyaki, they were spotted by someone. The brown-haired guitarist was suddenly among them, glomping Ui.

Yui: "Ui!"

Ui: "Sis!"

The rest of Houkago Tea Time followed, now dressed in casual summer clothes. "Sup!" Ritsu greeted them with a grin.

Mugi: "Can we join you?"

Ms. Yamanaka: "You guys were great today."

Mio: "Ah. Are these girls the new Music Club you were talking about, Sawako-sensei?"

Sara, Aira, Hikari, Tei, Cecil: "Hello!"

Cecil: "U-uhm! Thank you for that wonderful performance!"

Some introductions later, everyone was already acting friendly with each other. The ones who were the quickest to do this were Yui and Tei. Yui was already hugging a blushing Cecil (Yui: "So cute!"); Hikari and Mugi seemed familiar to each other and acted almost like sisters. Sara left to go back to the tent, although she said she'd be back.

Tei was looking back and forth from Azusa to Hikari with a smile.

Azusa: "Wh-what is it?"

Tei smiled at Azusa.

Hikari: "Don't be rude, Tei. She's your senior by six years."

Tei giggled. "I just can't help but think that it's hopeless for you when I look at Azunyan-senpai, Hika-chan."

Hikari: "Why you—!"

Ritsu placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Be prepared for the harsh future of being eternally small, little miss," she said.

Azusa: "Ritsu-senpai!"

Ritsu and Tei laughed.

Ritsu: "Now that I think about it, aren't we as old as Sawa-chan was when we first met her?"

Yui was counting her fingers before she gasped. "Woah! You're right, Ricchan!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Hey… you're not calling me old, are you?"

Ritsu: "I-I'm not."

Yui: "Sawa-chan! You're one year away from 30!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Shut up!"

Sara came back with a big bag. "Everyone, would you like to have the mandarin orange roll cakes I made?"

Aira: "What? Is it time for dessert?"

Tei: "You didn't tell us you brought these!"

Sara: "If I did, it'll be gone already."

Ui: "I know what you mean."

Yui giggled guiltily.

Ritsu: "That's a lot! How many did you make!"

Sara: "I have at least one for everyone."

Hikari: "You mean you expected 13 of us?"

Sara: "I made 13 just in case."

Mugi: "I made some tea, too!"

Yui: "That's our Mugi-chan!"

Ui and Mugi served the tea while Sara handed out the cakes in neat little boxes.

Yui: "Outdoor tea time! This is new!"

Everyone: "Thank you for the food!"

Everyone took a bite of the cake.

Ritsu: "Oh, this is delicious!"

Mio: "It's amazing!"

Mugi: "Heavenly!"

Yui looked like she was in heaven.

Azusa: "This is good!"

Cecil nodded.

Hikari: "Wonderful!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "You can smell and taste the mandarin orange even in the cream and dough… simply amazing."

Aira: "Oh! It's great."

Tei: "Amazing, it's almost as good as Nonochi's."

Sara: "I actually had Nono teach me some stuff."

Yui: "Seconds!"

Azusa: "Yui-senpai, don't be rude. And you don't ask for seconds with cake."

Sara bowed apologetically. "Sorry, I only have one for everyone."

Yui despaired.

Sara: "I-is she alright?"

Ritsu: "Oh, Yui? Don't mind her."

Mio: "Sara-san!"

Sara: "Y-yes!"

Mio: "Teach me how to make these!"

Ui: "I'd like to learn your techniques, too, Sara-san."

Sara nodded. "Sure."

Yui: "Ricchan. What's with Mio-chan lately?"

Ritsu: "Hm? What about her?"

Yui: "She's been obsessed with learning to make new dishes recently."

Ritsu: "Ah. That's because we're both living in the same apartment now, so she thought she should learn how to make different kinds of food!"

Yui: "Ohhh!"

Jun: "Living in the same apartment?"

Mugi: "They're like a couple, aren't they?"

Mio: "We're not a couple! Stop saying that!"

Tei: "They're pretty extreme, aren't they?"

Aira: "I suddenly feel so young."

Cecil: "Houkago Tea Time's amazing, but they're no different than we are at all…"

Azusa: "Ah. So the current Light Music Club's not very serious as well?"

Cecil: "A-Azusa-senpai! Why are you reading my mind!"

"You were talking out loud." Azusa smiled. "Don't worry. I used to think the same way, too."

Azusa: (As a senpai, I should pat her head like Mio-senpai does!)

Tei was looking at them. "It looks more like Azunyan-senpai's the one who's the junior," she smirked.

Hikari chuckled. "You're right."

Ritsu: "Ohhh? Like you're one to talk?"

Hikari: "That's unfair! I can't tell you to shut up since you're like a super senpai!"

Ritsu: "You're calling me old!"

Azusa was reaching towards Cecil's head. "U-uhm, what are you doing?" Cecil asked.

Azusa: "W-well... a pat... on the head..."

Cecil patted Azusa's head, confused.

Azusa: "Not that!" (Not again!)

* * *

><p>Maaan, imagine if this was all animated instead of written.<p>

I wouldn't call this the longest chapter I've written, since it was mostly extended through song lyrics that aren't even mine. By the way, I took the translations from gendou. If you were wondering, by "stylized version of their high school uniforms" I meant that HTT was wearing their school uniforms styled like that in the NO, Thank you! ED. I've been (somewhat) planning to write this chapter for some time, and I'm glad to have finally written it. Maybe I put it out a little too early, seeing that the current Light Music Club haven't even played together as a band yet (they don't even have a band name yet), but who's to say this would be the last time you'll see the original Keions in this fan fic? I wish I could've fit in Sumire, Nao, and the Gang of Girls (HTT's friends in college's Light Music Club; yes, that's their band's name, although one should probably refer to it in its Japanese name instead, which I forgot), but I don't think I know them enough to make some nice dialogue. I have something of a backstory to this chapter with the original Keions as the mains, but I don't know when I'll (or if I'll ever) write that. Anyway, I hope you had fun reading! Until next time!

PS: I actually drew the OCs in this fic (just concept artwork, sorta), with profiles and all that jazz. Everyone except Aira is done, but with this chapter finished, I should be able to finish the concept artwork tomorrow. Maybe I'll even release them, or something.


	7. Episode 7: Aspirations!

Keion!

Episode 7: Aspirations!

* * *

><p>Summer vacation was over, and the school festival wasn't too far away. Well, it wasn't that close, but it wasn't far away, either. Sara, content with three songs, didn't write any more for them to practice, while Cecil had been stricter in forcing everyone to practice. Tea time never disappeared, of course.<p>

During one such tea time after a practice session, Cecil brought it up: "By the way, what should be our band's name?"

Sara stopped midway before her teacup touched her lips, then she put it down. "You're right. We don't have one."

Hikari: "Sara no Woto."

Sara: "No!"

Tei: "Sleepy Time."

Cecil: "What do you think we are!"

Aira: "Afternoon Blues."

Hikari: "We're not a blues band."

Tei: "Pillow Talk!"

Cecil: "We're a music club!"

Hikari: "Mahou Shoujo Kazumiya Sara!"

Sara: "Stop sticking my name into it! How is that even a band name!"

Aira: "Vanilla Star."

Hikari: "What's with that girly name!"

Aira: "What? I was serious."

Tei: "Houkago Cake Time!"

Aira: "We just met a band named Houkago Tea Time, you know."

Hikari: "Stardust Reverie!"

Tei: "Love Sign: MASUTAAHH SUPAAAAAKKUU"

Aira: "You two, just shut up."

Hikari: "Then, how about you, Sara-san?"

Sara looked deep in thought, but sighed in the end. "I can't think of anything right now."

Tei: "Cecirru?"

Cecil: "Silky Love?"

Hikari: "What?"

Aira: "Not bad!"

Hikari: "We're not taking it!"

Tei: "Now now, let's take this seriously."

Aira: "You're the last person I want to hear that from!"

Sara giggled. "Well, let's just think of it overnight. It's getting late."

Hikari: "Eh? Going home already?"

Tei: "Why do you always go home early, Sara-san?"

Sara: "Hm? I have to prepare dinner."

Aira: "Sara's the big sister of five, so she works hard to take care of them."

Tei: "F-five!"

Hikari: "T-that's a lot!"

Tei: "Alright! We're having a sleepover at Sara's tonight!"

Hikari: "I'd love to taste Sara's cooking!"

Cecil: "Stop that."

Sara: "I wouldn't mind."

Cecil: "You won't!"

Sara: "But can we move it for tomorrow Saturday?"

Cecil: "Would that really be okay, Sara-san? I mean, wouldn't it be a hassle to take care of more people?"

Sara smiled.

Aira: "It's okay, Sara likes having visitors."

* * *

><p>And then Saturday came. Cecil and Aira, having been to Sara's house before, went on ahead, while Hikari and Tei went with Sara to buy ingredients for dinner and other groceries.<p>

"Ohh, so this is the supermarket," Hikari remarked.

Tei: "Haven't you seen one before, Hika-chan?"

Hikari: "I've seen them before on TV, but it's my first time being in one."

Sara: "Don't you go grocery shopping, Hikari?"

Hikari: "No. Isn't that the chef's job?"

Sara: "Really?"

Sara clapped her hands and asked the two for help with the groceries. She was testing the weight of a cabbage when Hikari came with the potatoes Sara asked for. When Sara saw the bag of potatoes, she smiled.

Sara: "These ones are no good, Hikari. You have to pick them carefully!"

Hikari looked confused as Sara went to the potatoes and picked another bag. "Look, these ones all look better." Then she pointed to the broccolis, specifically at the one with the lighter green. "This broccoli looks fresher." And she kept going. "Cucumbers with more bumps taste better. Taro isn't just cheaper with skin on, it's more nutritious. You have to pick them carefully!"

Sara said more things, but Hikari couldn't keep track of it all. When Sara was done, she just nodded. "O-okay."

"Oh, Sara-chan!" one of the employees called. "Working hard, as always."

Sara: "It's no trouble at all, Tooru-san!"

Tooru: "Awright! Let's get crazy with these half-off stickers!"

Sara: "Aren't those for tomorrow, though?"

Tooru: "You don't want them?"

Sara: "I'll have this, please!"

Tooru: "Ohh, you've got an eye for quality, as always."

* * *

><p>Hikari: "So? What are you doing with these radishes?"<p>

Sara: "A Filipino dish called kilawin!"

Hikari: "W-what? I've never heard of such a thing."

Tei: "Filipino?"

Sara laughed. "Don't worry, it's really tasty."

Tei: "Do you always make dinner, Sara-san?"

Sara: "Mom works overseas, and I don't have a dad, so making dinner and taking care of the kids is my job."

Tei: "You're such a good girl, Sara-san. Okay! Me and Hika-chan are going to help out with everything today! Right, Hika-chan?"

Hikari: "Eh! O-of course!"

"Thanks!" Sara smiled. "Ah. That reminds me; we should call Aira and say we're heading home." She brought out her phone, colored white with a bunny phone strap. Hikari looked at it curiously. Sara looked at Hikari, then handed the phone to her. "Do you want to do it?"

"No, it's not that," Hikari said as she took the phone. "Does this even have a camera?"

Sara smiled. "No."

Hikari: "Woah, that's ancient!"

Tei: "It's a fossil! A fossil, Hika-chan!"

Hikari: "A relic of the ancient times!"

Sara laughed. "Don't be rude to the phone. If it really is that old, it might wake in your sleep and do bad things."

Hikari, Tei: "We're terribly sorry."

* * *

><p>Soon after calling Aira's phone, they got to the house. It was a two-story house that was smaller than Tei's. "Welcome to our humble home!" Sara exclaimed.<p>

Tei: "Ohh, looks nice!"

Hikari: (It's smaller than our horse stable…)

Sara slid open the door. "I'm back!" she called. "Were you all good kids?"

Aira appeared. "Oh, welcome back," she greeted.

Hikari: (They're totally a couple.)

Then appeared a wave of kids (not really, there were four of them; three guys and one girl), greeting Sara in various different versions of "Welcome back!" and "Strangers!"

"Let me introduce them to you," Sara said. "This is Tatsuya, the youngest of the family! He's five. This is seven-year old Seiya. Then these are Kaguya and Kato! They're twins, both ten years old." All the four of them bowed and greeted Hikari and Tei.

Next appeared Cecil, with a girl with a couple of ribbons on her neck-length black hair. "Ah, Sis! Welcome back!" she greeted Sara with a smile. "We have more guests?" She bowed and smiled. "Hello, I'm Yuka, the second eldest. Thank you for looking after my sister!"

Hikari, Tei: "Hello!"

Sara: "Yuka here's the reason I can afford to go to the club. She's a reliable sister!"

When greetings and introductions finished, Sara immediately went to cooking, Yuka helping her out, Cecil being taught. Aira started on cleaning the house, while Hikari, and Tei were playing with the kids. Barnaby, who was with Cecil, was being played with by Kaguya. "It's a cute mouse!"

Tei: "He's not a mouse, he's a bunny! His name's Barnaby."

Then Seiya jumped at Tei's back, who yelped in surprise. "Is that a challenge!" she said, half a second before Tatsuya jumped on Seiya's back, going "Boom!" Hikari was laughing.

"Hey, don't be rude to your guests," Aira chuckled.

With four guests, the house became more chaotic than usual. Tei and Hikari brought them outside, leaving trails of sparkling bubbles that the kids chased and popped. Hikari spun and surrounded herself with bubbles that Kaguya couldn't help but squeal at.

Sara was chopping radish as Yuka rushed to get a band aid for Cecil, who cut her finger as she was chopping onions.

Kaguya learned of Hikari's fondness for manga, and was showing the drummer her favorites when they came in. Meanwhile, Tei was riding a child-sized bicycle outside as the other kids laughed at her.

Sara took down the dry laundry from under the sun and tossed them at Aira, who fell down to the floor. Kaguya, Kato, and Aira folded the clothes as Hikari was being rode on like a horse by Tatsuya, Seiya jumping on the floor as he waited excitedly for his turn.

Sara added bite-sized pieces of pork to the sautéed garlic, onions, and tomatoes.

Tei was dancing and singing like an idol to Hikari's music in front of the kids, Hikari, and Aira, who was done cleaning. She wasn't bad, rather, she was excellent, and her audience was clapping eagerly. Except Tatsuya, who was holding his crotch and dancing himself; Sara had ran in and took him to the bathroom before he could even make an expression.

There was hardly a break; soon enough after the dancing, Aira, Kaguya, and Tatsuya were already on a fake gun shootout with Hikari, Tei, Kato, and Seiya outside, Hikari falling dramatically as she was hit.

Soon enough, Sara's kilawin was done, and the sun was setting when all chores were finished.

Tei was lying on the floor, exhausted, while Kato was sitting on her back, telling Barnaby to shake his hand.

Kaguya: "I don't think he can shake hands."

Kato: "Then, sit!"

Kaguya: "He's already sitting."

Hikari was sighing tiredly when a smiling Yuka came to the table to set the plates. "Are you tired, Hikari-san?"

"Ahh, you have no idea," Hikari replied. "It was fun, though."

Yuka giggled.

"It's dinner time!" Sara called to everyone when the sun was gone. The table was surprisingly big enough for ten people. "Thanks for waiting!" Sara said as she set down the kilawin.

Hikari was unimpressed when she saw the dish, but tried hard to hide it.

Sara poked Hikari's forehead. "Don't worry, it tastes great." Everybody else nodded in agreement. Tei also did it, more for the sake of nodding than agreeing. Sara clapped her hands together, "Thank you for the food!"

Everyone: "Thank you for the food!"

Aira turned on the TV. (Hikari: (TVs like those still exist!))

TV: "What TIME is it? EEEESSCAPADE TIME!"

Everyone rushed to get their share of the kilawin, while Hikari held back, still doubtful that she'd like the dish. The kids were digging in eagerly; Aira and Cecil seemed to be enjoying it; Tei started sparkling with her first bite. Hikari just stared at the dish.

Sara: "Hikari, if you don't eat, there won't be any left."

"I-I will…," Hikari said weakly. Then she grabbed some with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth. Then her eyes turned into stars. "It's a lot better than it looks!" she exclaimed.

Aira: "Looks like Sara's cooking impressed the princess!"

Tei: "It tastes so wonderful!"

Cecil: "I thought you could only eat sweets."

Sara: "We have desserts!"

Tei: "As expected of Sara-san! You never disappoint!"

Once the kilawin was all done (Sara was glad that they liked it, but she sighed that there were no leftovers; she wanted to have some for lunch tomorrow), the desserts came: mandarin orange mousse!

Sara smiled at everyone. "It's an experiment with Nono, so let me know what you think."

Everyone took a bite, and then everyone had pink sparkling bubbles all over their heads.

Tei: "I can die in peace now."

Hikari: "It tastes of happiness."

Cecil: "I… I want to learn to make these, too."

Aira smiled. "Amazing as always," she praised Sara, a thumb up.

* * *

><p>Soon enough after dinner and some chores after that, Sara had put the kids to sleep, and all of the Light Music Club plus Yuka were relaxing in Sara's room. It was a rather plain room, as Hikari remarked. Apart from the stuffed bunny doll, there wasn't much else to it. "I like it better this way," was what Sara had said. "Besides, it's this room gets turned into a guest room when we have visitors, so that means we're all sleeping here."<p>

After a while of watching them exploring the room, Sara had gone downstairs to make some tea.

Hikari sighed, although she was smiling. She faced Yuka. "How do you and your sister handle this kind of chaos every day?"

Yuka giggled. "For my sister, I guess it's because she thinks it's fun."

Hikari: "Fun?"

Yuka nodded. "Yes!"

"Really?" Hikari sighed, giving up. "Sara-san, you'll always be a mystery to me. So, how about you?"

Yuka: "I'm not really sure… Maybe it's because I'm just used to it."

Hikari hummed thoughtfully. "I guess I'll never understand. I'm the youngest child in my family, after all. How about you, Tei?"

Tei: "I'm an only child, but I guess you could say I had someone who was like a sister to me."

* * *

><p>Like when she sleeps on the bus.<p>

Nono: "Tei-chan, wake up! We're gonna miss our stop!"

Or when she sleeps on the train.

Nono: "Tei-chan, wake up! We're here!"

Or when she slept on the floating ring in a swimming pool?

Nono: "Tei-chan, wake up! It's dangerous to sleep here!"

How about the vacation mornings?

Nono: "Tei-chaaaaan, wake up! It's morning!"

* * *

><p>Aira: "Just what do you think a sister is!"<p>

Tei: "Then, how about you, Cecirru, Aira?"

Cecil: "Hm? I have a big sister back in America."

Aira: "I've got a younger brother, the same age as Yuka."

Hikari: "Ah! You never did tell us. How old are you, Yuka?"

Yuka: "I'm 14. I'm in the third year of junior high."

Hikari: "Ohh! You're only a year behind us."

Cecil: "You'll be taking high school entrance exams soon, right?"

Yuka: "Yes!"

Aira: "What school are you going to?"

"Sakura High," Yuka said eagerly. "I want to be with Sis at school!"

Tei: "You're such a good girl, Yukapyon."

Cecil: (-pyon?)

Sara came into the room. "Tea's here."

Tei: "Yay! Sara-san's tea!"

"Sis is always talking about how wonderful the Light Music Club is," Yuka said in between drinks. "I think it'll be lovely to have all of you as seniors!"

Cecil looked up. "So you're joining us next year?"

Yuka: "I'd love to, but I don't think I'd have the time; I have to get home early to take care of everybody."

Sara was crying. "I'm sorry you have to do everything just so I could be in a club."

"No, no, it's fine!" Yuka blushed and fidgeted. "For me, everything's fine as long as Sis is having fun."

Sara hugged the blushing girl. "You're such a great sister!"

Aira: "You're so dedicated."

Tei: "You're such a good girl, Yukapyon."

Cecil just smiled.

Hikari: (It's probably just me, but it feels dangerous for some reason.)

Tei: "Is there anything you want to be, Yukapyon?"

Yuka: "W-well…" (I can't tell them! I can't tell them I want to follow Sis wherever she goes!) "I-I still don't have an idea what I want to do."

Tei: "Really? You seem like someone who does."

Cecil: (How could you even tell that?)

Tei: "How about you, Hika-chan?"

Hikari: "A writer."

Aira: "What? That's so boring."

Hikari: "HEY!"

Aira laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding."

Yuka: "You want to write novels, Hikari-san?"

Hikari: "Novels can count too, but what I guess I want would be to share stories to the world. It doesn't have to be a writer specifically."

Tei: "Now that you say it like that, it seems pretty big."

Hikari: "Well, it's still just a dream."

Tei: "Ai-kun, how about you?"

Aira looked up thoughtfully. "I haven't really thought about it. I'm always going with the flow."

Sara: "You're going to have to know what you want to do some time in the future."

Aira smiled. "Yes, yes."

Yuka: "How about yours, Tei-san?"

Tei: "No, not really."

Everyone: (That reply was too fast!)

Tei stretched. "It feels so far away; I can't even imagine it."

Hikari: "Really? No dreams at all?"

Tei shook her head. "I don't really feel like I have one of those vague, cloud-like, faraway dreams." Then she brought one finger up. "Ah! Maybe there's this one thing."

Sara: "What is it?"

Tei smiled. "I want to shine."

Hikari: "Shine?"

Aira: "What do you mean by that?"

Tei: "Nothing much. I just want to shine."

Cecil: "It's that vague?"

Tei: "How about you, Cecirru?"

Cecil was silent for a moment as she thought about it. "I'm not a hundred percent sure on what I want to be, but I think it's safe to say I want to be a musician. A guitarist, to be specific."

Aira nodded. "I see. You want to be the guitarist of a band with friends that you love and cherish. That is to say… us!" she grinned.

Cecil suddenly blushed fiercely.

Tei: "Whaaaaaat? That's so cute, Cecirru!"

Hikari laughed. "You're so adorable, Cecil-chan."

Even Sara was laughing.

Cecil: "Sara-san!"

Sara: "Sorry, we're not laughing because we think it's a silly dream or anything."

Cecil: "Hmmmmmph."

Sara: "I promise we'll all work harder as a band, okay?"

Aira: "Sara's right. If there's something I know I want to do, it's to play with everybody else!"

Hikari: "I agree."

Tei nodded.

Cecil looked down, blushing more. "Th-thanks."

Tei: "What about you, Sara-san? Any dreams?"

"Me?" Sara looked surprised. "To be honest, I don't really have a clear dream either." She smiled nostalgically. "When I was a child, I wanted to be an idol."

Hikari: "Sara as an idol!"

Tei: "It's not a bad image!"

Sara laughed softly. "Well, maybe I still want to be one, but it honestly doesn't matter to me anymore."

Yuka: "Why?"

"These days, I'm just happy to see everyone's smiles." Sara grinned. "Besides, I sing with everyone in the band, and it's a lot of fun. If anything, I suppose one wish I have is that we can be together for a long time."

Aira: "We'll be together."

Hikari: "For as long as we can."

Cecil smiled.

Tei: "Then, promise me we'll shine!"

Cecil: "Of course! We'll shine!"

Sara nodded, smiling. "We'll shine."

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I own neither Touhou nor Adventure Time.<p>

This chapter was pretty fun to write. I do have an idea on what the band's name could be, but I don't see how that name relates, so I'm still lost. I'll be sure to decide on what it is before the cultural festival, though. I feel like I nailed a K-ON feel in this chapter, and I like what I did. It's bad that most of my best plans for the story don't come until much much later in the future; I'm worried I might lose interest in the fic before it comes to that. Anyway, I don't have much else to say here today, so I'm ending this silly afterword here. I hope you had fun reading this chapter! I'm not sure what the next chapter's going to be about, but look forward to it nevertheless! Until next time!

PS: Character profiles are mostly done, but since I just finished Aira's designed and recently revised Tei's design, it'll take longer, especially since I also want to add some other things. (You can see the current ones "previewed" on my Twitter.)

More PS: Kilawin is tasty.


	8. Episode 8: Preparing!

Keion!

Episode 8: Preparing!

* * *

><p>Cecil was humming their song happily when Aira and Sara entered the clubroom. "You look happy, Cecil," Aira commented.<p>

Cecil smiled in reply.

The cultural festival was coming closer and closer! With less than a month left, the Light Music Club practiced their songs more dedicatedly, determined to make their first concert great. Of course, that's not all there is for them. Every class had something planned for the coming cultural festival.

While waiting for Hikari and Tei to finish their cleaning duties, Sara had made tea and brought out snacks (strawberry tarts of the Wakaouji brand, the best of anything strawberry) as per usual.

Cecil: "What's your class doing, Aira-san?"

Aira: "I wanted a maid café, but in the end we went for a play."

Cecil: "A play?"

Aira: "Not Romeo and Juliet or anything Shakespeare, though."

Sara: "It's an original play, and Hikari's the writer, but she's keeping things secret until for tomorrow."

"And it'll be a wonderful reveal!" exclaimed Hikari as she entered with Tei, who waved hello. "I finally get to write something meaningful," Hikari said as she sat down on the table, "I fought hard for that play!"

Aira pouted. "I wanted to do a maid café."

Hikari: "Why do you even want one?"

Aira closed her eyes dreamily. "I want to try wearing a maid's frilly and lady uniform." When she opened them, she saw Cecil, Tei, and Hikari trying hard not to laugh. "HEY!"

Sara just smiled. "So, what's your class doing, Cecil, Tei?"

Cecil blushed, while Tei grinned at Aira. "A maid café."

Aira: "Are you serious!"

Tei nodded. "And I'm designing the costumes with Sawa-chan, so it's bound to be amazing!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Indeed, I can't wait!"

Sara: "Would you like some tea too, Yamanaka-sensei?"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Yes, please."

Aira: "How do you keep appearing from nowhere!"

Hikari smirked and leered at Cecil. "Ohhh, this ought to be fun."

Sara came back with tea. "I'm looking forward to seeing you two and Nono in those costumes."

Ms. Yamanaka: "By the way, have you girls thought of your band's name yet? You're going to need it."

Sara brought a finger up before everyone got to offer silly suggestions again. "I have an idea, but I'm not sure about it just yet."

Aira: "You do?"

Cecil: "Let's hear it, then!"

Hikari: "So much for Stardust Reverie."

Tei: "But Pillow Talk's such a nice name."

Ms. Yamanaka: "What is it, Sara-chan?"

Sara: "It's…"

* * *

><p>Look at this! This is a cliffhanger break thing! Ha ha ha!<p>

* * *

><p>Class rep and a member of the Student Council with long, beautiful white hair that seemed like a shade of pink, Houraisan Inori was the one who proposed that the class do a play for the cultural festival and the self-proclaimed producer and co-director (Hikari being the director). She was also the one most excited when Hikari arrived in class the next morning announcing that she had finished her original play, but no one could've discerned that from beneath her mysterious smile.<p>

During homeroom, Hikari handed out packets of papers to everyone in the class. "This is just a general outline of sorts; I'm handing out the scripts when we decide on who's who," she said as she handed Inori her copy, who took it with a smile.

Excited herself, Sara started reading the story, titled "Red Spider Lilies."

* * *

><p>Another cliffhanger-break-thing; are you serious?<p>

* * *

><p>Hikari clapped her hands. "By the way! I got this brilliant idea while writing the script."<p>

Inori blinked curiously. "Could you tell us, Hikari-san?"

Hikari: "Let's make it into a musical play!"

Sara's eyes twinkled, and Inori's probably did too, but it was invisible to the normal eye. The rest of the class murmured amongst themselves, and many of them seemed to brighten up to the idea. When they're not the ones singing, anyway.

Aira: "That's a fine idea, but who's going to be playing the music?"

Inori took a moment to think. "Should we ask the Wind Ensemble Club?"

Hikari: "I doubt it; they're also doing something for the cultural festival."

Inori laid her chin on a finger thoughtfully. "I could hire an orchestra?"

Aira: "N-no, I don't think we should go that far."

Hikari: "I can make music with the computer, so let's use that."

Inori nodded. "I can compose."

Noel, a normally quiet girl with black old-fashioned bob-cut hair, raised her hand. "Looking at the story, wouldn't it be a bit hard to work with?" she said. "I mean, all the flowers, the spider lilies, and even choreographed dance fights?"

Hikari folded her arms. "Money's not a problem, and as for the choreography… well, we should select our actors first. The cast isn't that big anyway, so it shouldn't take too long," she said, "I nominate… Ai-kun for the prince!"

Mika, a girl with long light brown hair tied in a ponytail, had sparkling eyes. "Prince Aira! That doesn't sound bad at all!"

Aira jerked up, yelling: "What!"

"You're a good martial artist, aren't you, Ai-kun? With that, we shouldn't have to work as hard for the fight scene," Hikari reasoned. "Besides, you're really quite princely," she added very softly.

Inori smiled as she wrote down Aira's name on the board. "Any other nominations?" There were two other nominations, Megumi and Shizuka, but were both defeated by Aira's sparkling boyish charm and martial arts expertise.

"T-the male lead?" Aira despaired. "I-I'm… I'm singing?"

Inori: "Good luck as the prince, Michiru-san."

"The gardener?" Hikari started, then just shrugged, smiling. "A unanimous vote for Sara?" she said, knowing how great a pair Sara and Aira make, and that this view wasn't limited to just her vision; the whole class shared it. There were no objections; rather, there were several nods and agreements.

Usami, an energetic short girl with brown hair usually made good-natured fun of due to her name, (Tei calls her Bunny-chan the Second), raised her hand. "I agree! I heard her sing from the Light Music Club once, so she's definitely the one for the job."

Inori was just about to start writing Sara's name on the board when Sara stood up. "I'll do it!"

"Unanimous without objections, not to mention a volunteer," Inori smiled. "Best of luck to you on your role, Kazumiya-san."

The shinigami role was taken by Inori by volunteer, whom Sara was now concerned about because she was already doing so much. Inori was taken aback by her concern, but asked her not to worry.

"I really want to do this," she said with a disarming smile.

The role of yama was voted to Tohno Kagura, a short girl with shoulder-length wavy light brown hair. Kagura was known for being the nicest girl you will ever know. Then the rest of the cast, all side characters left, were decided.

Hikari: "Me and Inori will have everything we need prepared tomorrow, so everyone else, let's get started on practicing and getting ready!"

* * *

><p>Sunohara Sumire: strict, serious, a model student whose name was always on the top whenever test grades came out. She was also athletic and an ace-of-all-trades, such to the point that only Sara could surpass her in being able to do anything. She had back-length dark brown hair that had a different style every other day. She wasn't the class rep, though; she was the one who suggested the maid café, much to everyone's surprise.<p>

The class rep was the normally gentle and soft-voiced Kaname Reimu (called Raichu by Tei) who had blonde hair tied in short twin-tails. She was also the treasurer of the Student Council. Yes, she was normally a calm and kind person, but she changes when money was involved.

Such as when a haunted house was suggested.

Reimu(?): "Are you freaking insane! Do you know how much money that would cost! With the economy these days, you can't just throw out these money-spending ideas so recklessly!"

In the end, everyone settled for Sumire's (cheaper) maid café idea; Tei was the designer of the costumes while Ms. Yamanaka (who suddenly appeared in the room) insisted on making them.

Nono, by Tei's recommendation, was tasked with the menu and teaching the others to make the simple yet wonderful dishes she had planned.

Tei: "And Cecirru will be our mascot!"

Cecil: "H-hey!"

Kannagi Mato, a girl with two short braids on the sides of her face and neck-length hair, smiled eagerly. "I like the idea! Make her costume special!"

Cecil: "W-wait! I can do something else!"

Miki Momi (Tei calls her Cheryl for some reason), a girl with long black hair that reached her waist and gets along really well with Tei, nodded. "She's willing to do something in addition to being our mascot. Cecirru's such a wonderful person."

Mariya Yun, the girl who sits to Cecil's right, was smiling. She was looking at Sumire, who was looking at the scene blankly, and somehow took this as a motion of approval.

Cecil sighed in defeat.

Kuzunohara Misaki, a tall girl with back-length brown hair and a ponytail, laughed softly. "We're sorry Cecil; we can't help it if you're adorable."

Reimu smiled. "Votes all go to Cecil, then. She gets a special costume!"

* * *

><p>The next day, after school!<p>

Hikari and Inori both somehow managed to finish everything, including the music, the needed materials, and the songs. Most of the class started working on the décor and related stuff. Those who had major parts, Aira, Sara, Inori, and Kagura, were practicing their lines while the others with minor parts watched.

Kagura's part didn't require any singing. Her part as the judge of the dead, though, demanded a whole new character for her, so everyone was almost frightened at how stern she sounded when she recited her lines.

Hikari: "K-kagura-san? Is that even you?"

Kagura bowed apologetically. "I'm sorry! I tried to sound judge-like."

Aira: "I can say it worked really well."

Sara, as expected, sang her lines beautifully and resulted in a stunning silence of the whole class. She blushed in embarrassment, but smiled in thank you for the class that gave her applause when she was done.

Hikari: "It's a blessing to the ears."

Inori: "I feel blessed to have heard you sing, Sara-san."

Inori didn't have as many lines as Aira and Sara, but her song also silenced the class into listening to her. The resulting applause made her flash her trademark mysterious smile.

Sara: "Ohh! You're really good yourself, Inori-san!"

Hikari: "I never knew about this!"

Aira, on the other hand, surprised everyone with her singing, which was unexpectedly impressive. It wasn't anything like Aira would've liked though; her singing and her lines only further proved that she was the best fit for her role as the prince, as evidenced by some squealing from the audience of classmates.

Aira blushed fiercely, then pouted. "I wanted to play princess."

Hikari: "Not a chance, Prince Aira!"

Inori: "The role of prince really suits you, Michiru-san!"

Aira sighed. "But…"

Sara twirled around Aira. "Prince Aira is dazzling the stage!"

Aira: "Shut up!"

* * *

><p>Another day! The cultural festival was coming the next day, and all classes are in a frenzy.<p>

Tei burst into the room loudly, wearing a maid uniform. "Costumes are done!" she exclaimed. "Actually, we decided everyone should have a different maid costume; this one's just mine," she said as she brought in a whole set of hanged maid uniforms, each with the name of their respective owners.

The class all looked up from making the decorations excitedly.

Every one of them was different, like Tei said, but all had the same black and white scheme. Except for one.

"And I'm proud to present our lovely Cecirru!" Tei said as she pulled the struggling and blushing Cecil into the room. Cecil's maid costume had a larger focus on white with some shades of green. Not to mention her costume seemed closer to being a frilly magical girl costume with some maid-ish inspirations.

Everyone's eyes twinkled at Cecil.

Hikari, whose class was just next door, came in. "Not bad! These costumes are impressive, but we won't lose!" she declared, presenting Sara and Aira in their costumes for the play.

Sara was wearing a white long-sleeve kimono decorated with golden patterns of spider lilies covering it. Sara looked amazing in it, and everyone was dazzled by her. "This isn't her initial costume," Hikari said, "She starts off as a simple gardener, after all."

Cecil: "Sara-san, you look beautiful."

Tei: "Ohhh! You look amazing, Sara-san! I'm almost jealous."

Sara blushed, embarrassed. "T-thanks."

Sara might have dazzled, but the reluctant Aira was the one who took the spotlight with her prince costume. She wore black leggings underneath an immaculate and royal-looking blue outfit, and on her shoulders and back was a black cape patterned with blue roses. A final touch was the small crown on Aira's head. The prince looked at the silent audience. "Wh-what?"

Everyone was silent. Even Tei had no words. Rather, she had an uncommon pink flush on her face.

Then the whole class squealed, and everyone's vision of Aira contained sparkling.

Hikari grinned. "I'm so proud of my designs!"

Then a girl with a white cloak and hood with a scythe tapped her on the back. "Say, this shinigami costume's pretty great too, Hikari-san," Inori said.

"Of cour—" Hikari was going to say, until she got a look at Inori, then she shrieked.

* * *

><p>Whoops, late update. I'm sorry about that. It's not like I've been that busy. And no, I'm not losing interest in the fanfic, don't even think about that! ;_;<p>

This chapter's pretty much just a prelude to the cultural festival, which comes next chapter. It's shorter than usual, so I must also apologize for that. Rather than anything actually happening, I just introduced a ton more characters that would hardly see any use. "Red Spider Lilies" is a story I already wrote long ago, although it was written like a fairy tale with hardly any real dialogue. Maybe I should've copy-pasta'd it to this chapter, but I decided against it. Anyway, I hope you had fun with this chapter. Look forward to the next one!

PS: Character profiles will be done as soon as this stomachache declines. But like I said, there are previews of sorts on my Twitter, which is linked in my profile.

PSS: Character profiles are done, and you can find the links to them in my profile. Hope you like them!

PSSS: So, it seems ffnet screwed up the links and linked every name to Sara. Hikari told you she's a Mary Sue. Anyway, that's been fixed.


	9. Episode 9: Play!

Keion!

Episode 9: Play!

* * *

><p>The first day of the cultural festival has finally arrived! The school was abuzz with activity both from its students and from its visitors. The day's temperature wasn't bad either; it was a good day. The Light Music Club's concert wasn't until the next day, but today was the play that class 1-1 worked and practiced hard for.<p>

The play was written by the self-proclaimed director herself, Matsuoka Hikari, and co-directed by Houraisan Inori.

* * *

><p>Hikari peeked out from behind the curtains. "Ohh. It's a full house."<p>

Sara sighed to steady herself. Aira, who was against her role, seemed calmer than Sara, and laid a hand on the latter's shoulder. Aira grinned, and Sara smiled thankfully.

Aira: "Alright! Let's make this play a success!"

With Aira's insistence, everyone formed a circle with their hands on top of each other. The announcer was introducing the class and their play on the other side of the curtain.

Inori: "We all worked very hard for today, so let's give it our best and have no regrets!"

Everyone gave a nod.

Inori: "Everyone ready?"

Hikari, Aira: "Let's do this!"

* * *

><p>13:45 to 15:00 in the auditorium!<p>

"Red Spider Lilies"

* * *

><p>Cecil, Tei, and Nono entered the auditorium, having been given a break from their respective class project. Cecil was glad to have finally gotten off the maid costume, but Tei made sure to remind her that she'd be putting it on again later.<p>

Cecil looked around, concerned.

Cecil: "It's full already."

Nono: "Do you think we can find seats?"

Tei went forward. "Come on, there are some here!"

When they got to the seats, a girl with slightly wavy light brown shoulder-length hair sat down next to Tei. When Tei saw her, she gasped excitedly.

The girl looked at her curiously with a smile. "Yes?"

Tei: "You're a producer for 201 Pro! Tachibana Himeko-san!"

Himeko blinked, surprised. "I-I just barely started on the job," she said, embarrassed, but otherwise somewhat happy someone somehow recognized her.

* * *

><p>Narrator: Suminoya Akari<p>

Gardener: Kazumiya Sara

Prince: Michiru Aira

Shinigami: Houraisan Inori

Yama: Tohno Kagura

Red Spider Lilies

Narrator: "Once upon a time, in a long lost kingdom from far away, there was a beautiful garden owned by a family. It was an immense garden of two hundred yojanas, filled with beautiful cherry blossoms. It was spring, and all of them were in full bloom, a glorious view of petals flying with the wind."

(flowers bloom into the scene)

Narrator: "Each flower in the huge garden was in bloom, and a flower-viewing under the moon would have been fabulous, and the family that owned the garden was holding it, less than a few weeks away."

(Gardener enters)

Narrator: "There was a young gardener who tended the huge garden alone, and worked hard at it. She was a lonely miserable girl of the greatest beauty who was forced to tend to the flowers by the adopted family who hates her."

Gardener: _"Good morning, my lovely flowers_  
>"<em>Another day starts with me acquiescing to my family's wishes<em>  
>"<em>Of tending this immense yet beautiful garden<em>  
>"<em>I have done it all my life<em>  
>"<em>And I adore every flower with all my heart<em>  
>"<em>But I am only human<em>

(Gardener falls to her knees to sit among the red spider lilies)

Gardener: _"My beloved red spider lilies_  
>"<em>This garden is filled with every flower known to the living<em>  
>"<em>But I will always care for you the most<em>  
>"<em>Your alluring crimson petals<em>  
>"<em>A scarlet serenity that blesses me<em>  
>"<em>With a feeling of sanctuary<em>

"_It may not be of my family's wants_  
>"<em>But I deserve rest"<em>

(Gardener lies down among the spider lilies to sleep)

* * *

><p>When the music started and Sara closed her eyes and started singing, Cecil couldn't help it. Her eyes widened, and she gripped the sides of her seat hard. Even Tei seemed lost into the performance.<p>

The entire audience was silent as they listened and watched.

* * *

><p>(Prince enters slowly from corner)<p>

Prince: _"Whose tender voice is that?_  
>"<em>So loving, so kind and warm<em>  
>"<em>Yet so lonely, so forlorn"<em>

(Gardener wakes up)

Gardener: _"I am no longer alone_  
>"<em>Whose wonderful voice is that?<em>  
>"<em>It cannot be that of my family's<em>  
>"<em>For that voice is far too gentle"<em>

Prince: _"Whose beautiful voice was it that I heard?_  
>"<em>A lady, deep in a gentle slumber among the spider lilies<em>  
>"<em>Is she this garden's caretaker?"<em>

Gardener: _"Whose noble voice was it that I heard?"_  
>"<em>Who is it that wanders in my garden?"<em>

Prince: _"My lady, dear gardener_  
>"<em>Are you defying your family by choosing to rest?"<em>

Gardener: (kneels) _"My prince, your Highness_  
>"<em>I apologize; I merely thought that I deserved the respite<em>  
>"<em>I have tended this immense garden all my life<em>  
>"<em>And I love it with all my heart<em>  
>"<em>But I am only human"<em>

Prince: _"Please, gardener, rise_  
>"<em>I am not one of my brothers, who would choose to see you punished accordingly<em>  
>"<em>I merely want to make friends with you<em>  
>"<em>Was it not your voice, so warm and loving<em>  
>"<em>That I heard while I wandered the garden?"<em>

Gardener: _"I was singing, yes_  
>"<em>But I did not hear what your Highness heard<em>  
>"<em>Was it not your Highness' voice, so gentle and noble<em>  
>"<em>That woke me from my sleep?"<em>

* * *

><p>Hikari peeked from the backstage at the two performers singing and acting with each other. She had a wide smile on her face, and the stunned silence of the audience wasn't exactly making her smile feel like getting smaller.<p>

Hikari: "It's going really well."

Inori, in her shinigami costume, shared Hikari's feelings, but as usual, her feelings were hidden beneath her mysterious smile.

* * *

><p>However Cecil looked at it, this wasn't a school play. The music, the decorations, the performances, even the writing and the story itself; Hikari and Inori overdid it, and now they had successfully transported a full-scale opera production into a small school auditorium.<p>

Cecil sighed. Hikari probably had a lot of fun. This was almost like a fulfillment of her dream, after all.

Sara seemed to love what she was doing, too. At this point, it was hardly surprising that she could act really well, and sing in such a lovely way along with it.

Even Aira, who was pretty against doing the prince role, seemed sucked into it; she was doing great.

With so much effort put into this, Cecil was getting worried for their concert tomorrow.

Maybe she was overthinking it. Briefly, Cecil wondered if their senior Azusa felt the same way once.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

Ever since that day the prince had always come to the site of red spider lilies, and the young gardener found herself going there every day to wait for him. Their friendship eventually grew, and it soon went past that to a forbidden love between a pure-blooded prince who was the son of the king and a mere servant who was the gardener of a high family.

If it was ever discovered, the young gardener knew that she would be executed no matter how much the prince may protest against it.

The young gardener was tending to the red spider lilies when someone unnatural appeared. She saw a white-haired girl clad in white and had dark blue eyes. She carried a large black scythe with her and the stare she gave the gardener was deathly cold, though her voice was warm and gentle.

"You will die soon," she said.

…

When the time of the day came again for her and the prince to meet among the red spider lilies, she found herself waiting longer than usual. Unlike the common state of the sky at the time when she and the prince meet among the red spider lilies, which was when the sun was just getting ready to go to its slumber, this time the stars were appearing as tiny spots of light on the slowly darkening sky. The moon was just on the other side of the low-setting sun and the clouds were painted crimson. The sun was gone when he finally came.

* * *

><p>Prince: "I apologize, love. Did you waiting long?"<p>

(Gardener hugs Prince)

Gardener: "I can't wait long enough if it's for you. Why do you speak with such grief? What is wrong?"

(Prince sighs and is silent for a moment)

Prince: "My father has had me engaged with the daughter of your family."

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

The young gardener was struck silent. They both sat down among the red spider lilies, viewing the beautiful stars scattered all over the night sky. They stayed quiet as the winds whispered by and the family was wondering where their gardener was. The sounds of the night sung softly around them. The young gardener decided to break the silence.

* * *

><p>Gardener: "Then, let us run away."<p>

Prince: "Run away?"

Gardener: _"To a place where our families would not be able to do anything_  
>"<em>To a place where we are freer than the birds in the sky"<em>

Prince: _"Our families will chase us_  
>"<em>They will chain you to place of unending night<em>  
>"<em>To a place where the daylight cannot shine on our love"<em>

Gardener: _"Where shall we go, then?_  
>"<em>To a place that we may not see each other?<em>  
>"<em>It is not a place that I can in live in"<em>

Prince: _"If our families find our love_  
>"<em>You will surely perish<em>  
>"<em>You will surely go to a place of darkness<em>  
>"<em>To a place where you will not find any happiness"<em>

Gardener: _"Your Highness, my love_  
>"<em>A place, a world, in that I may not see you<em>  
>"<em>It is a place where I once resided in<em>  
>"<em>Before I heard your gentle and noble voice<em>

"_A place, a world, in that I may not see you_  
>"<em>It is a place that I never want to reside again<em>  
>"<em>It is death<em>  
>"<em>It is darkness"<em>

* * *

><p>Hikari: (Wait, she's crying!)<p>

Cecil: (She's definitely crying!)

Tei: (Those aren't even fake tears!)

Inori was smiling her trademark smile, but she was thinking along the same lines.

* * *

><p>(Prince falls silent then slowly draws near Gardener to hug her once more from her back)<p>

Prince: _"Love, my love_  
>"<em>I apologize, my love<em>

"_No more talk of darkness_  
>"<em>Forget these wide-eyed fears<em>  
>"<em>I'm here, nothing can harm you<em>  
>"<em>My words will warm and calm you<em>

"_Let me be your freedom,_  
>"<em>Let daylight dry your tears<em>  
>"<em>I'm here, with you, beside you<em>  
>"<em>To guard you and to guide you"<em>

Gardener: _"Say you'll love me every waking moment_  
>"<em>Turn my head with talk of summertime<em>  
>"<em>Say you need me with you now and always<em>  
>"<em>Promise me that all you say is true<br>_"_That's all I ask of you"_

Prince: _"Let me be your shelter_  
>"<em>Let me be your light<em>  
>"<em>You're safe, no one will find you<em>  
>"<em>Your fears are far behind you"<em>

Gardener: _"All I want is freedom_  
>"<em>A world with no more night<em>  
>"<em>And you, always beside me<em>  
>"<em>To hold me and to hide me"<em>

Prince: _"Then say you'll share with me_  
>"<em>One love, one lifetime<em>  
>"<em>Let me lead you from your solitude<em>  
>"<em>Say you need me with you here beside you<em>  
>"<em>Anywhere you go let me go too<em>  
>"<em>My love, that's all I ask of you"<em>

Gardener: _"Say you'll share with me_  
>"<em>One love, one lifetime<em>  
>"<em>Say the word and I will follow you"<em>

Gardener and Prince: _"Share each day with me_  
>"<em>Each night, each morning"<em>

Gardener: _"Say you love me"_

Prince: _"You know I do"_

Gardener and Prince: _"Love me_  
>"<em>That's all I ask of you"<em>

(Gardener and Prince hug each other tightly)

* * *

><p>That's what Hikari's script said. Imagine everyone's faces when Sara kissed Aira's lips.<p>

Not even Inori could keep her trademark smile on.

Part of the audience kyaa'd.

Aira didn't seem interested in breaking her role and going out of character, but there was a _very_ visible blush on her face.

* * *

><p>Gardener and Prince: <em>"Anywhere you go let me go too<em>  
>"<em>Love me<em>  
>"<em>That's all I ask of you"<em>

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

And so the prince agreed and they arranged it to be on the night of the coming flower-viewing.

Unknown to them, one of the prince's brothers, who was jealous of the prince and hated him, had happened to wander by and overheard. He told the young gardener's and his family about their plans to run away at the night of the flower-viewing, and they set up to ambush them, capture the young gardener and have her executed, the prince punished.

But the prince's brother wasn't the only one who saw them. Sitting on one of the many cherry blossoms surrounding the glade filled with red spider lilies was the white-clad herald of death, who wondered if the young gardener would be able to defy death as she did the family.

When the night of the flower-viewing came, the moon was full and the stars were bright. The family's mansion was bright with lights and the immense garden's cherry blossoms were glowing in delight. The family's mansion received many visitors, each one of them nobles and in fancy attires and masks. The young gardener got hold of such an attire and a mask from the daughter of the family who loved her, contrary to the rest of the family. The daughter also had someone else she loved and didn't like the engagement, so she had decided to help her.

The young gardener felt largely out of place when she entered the crowd of nobles, even though she was wearing a beautiful white furisode kimono decorated with scarlet patterns of red spider lilies covering it that more than matched up to the other nobles. The mask covering her face was crimson with white patterns of red spider lilies. She met up with the prince and staying in the festival for a while, slowly made their way out to the immense garden, to the glade of red spider lilies.

Once they neared it the prince bid her to slow down as he drew his sword. The young gardener then realized what was happening as she drew her own weapon. They came out to the glade slowly and cautiously and as was expected, assassins sent by both their families leapt out of their covers and attacked.

* * *

><p>After recovering from the shock of the kiss, Cecil found that she could enjoy the action scene that followed.<p>

The choreographed fight was half swordfight and half dance. It was very impressive; it definitely didn't belong in an opera production, much less a school play. It was closer to that of a creative kung fu movie's, Cecil thought.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

The young gardener and the prince fought with a beauty that was unexpected by the assassins, dancing with each other, swords weaving and blurring. They clasped their hands as though they were dancing and timed each move to dodge, to attack, to help each other. The assassins lost many but there was still many of them. More of the assassins came, and no matter how beautiful and skillful the young gardener and the prince fought, they were having a bad time. The assassins succeeded in fatally wounding the young gardener before they killed the last of them.

The prince carried the young gardener back into the forest of cherry blossoms across from where they entered the glade and set her down, her head laid on a tree. He tried to stop the wound from bleeding and used the herbs from the garden to try and cure it. When he was done, the young gardener was asleep, and exhausted as he was, he drifted into his own sleep, the young gardener in his arms.

When he woke up it was midnight, and he found that the beautiful young gardener had died in his arms. She was smiling in sad joy of dying in her lover's arms. But the prince was not as happy as she was. He wanted to be with her, feel her joy with her. He took up his sword and stabbed himself in his chest.

The night was awfully quiet.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

The white-clad girl stood in front of the young gardener and the prince, looking at them with an expressionless look on her face.

"They both died, after all."

A tear rolled down her cheek.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

The young gardener and the prince found themselves in a foggy place. They realized that they were on a gondola, and a small figure was smoothly rowing them across the river. The mist lightened and revealed the white-clad girl who was looking ahead, and the thousands of red spider lilies on the edges of the river.

"What must have your life been like?" the white-clad girl suddenly asked, directed at whom unknown. "The breadth of this river is determined by the virtue you had in life and by your relationships with others."

"Where are we going?" the prince asked.

"This is the river Styx, and across is the yama. You're going to receive judgment at her hands."

The winds were silent and cold and the red spider lilies swayed to them.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

"Illya Adele

"Gardener of the Kiiroibara family.

"When you were born to your parents they were happy. Even though you were the cause of your mother's death, your father cared for you with all that he can. He taught you everything you know about the garden and how to tend to it and the various flowers that inhabited it. He taught you how to fight with a sword skillfully. But one day he disappears and your hate for everything starts to develop. The family in which your parents had served under decided to adopt you, and you accused them of having murdered your father. They gave you the whole garden to tend to alone. Your hate for them grew, and the only thing that assuaged your hate was the flowers that you cared for like your very own children.

"You defied the family that adopted you by slacking in your duties and having a forbidden affair with the prince of the kingdom, who was engaged with the daughter of the family that had adopted you, despite being a mere servant. You told the prince that you and he should run away from everything, live away from everything. A selfish decision of yours that led to not only your death, but also his.

"But the world hadn't treated you human. No human would have tended to such a garden by themselves, yet you did it, since it was your parents' greatest belonging. Each flower and tree, each blade of grass and flying petal, you cared for deeply. Even though you hated everything else, when you met the prince of the kingdom among the red spider lilies, that hate slowly dissipated as you discovered love."

The yama neared the young gardener, who gasped softly in surprise as the light came back to her eyes with a slight pain on her head where the yama had hit her with the tag of Judgment.

"To ascend to heaven, to rest in the ground, to be born anew—

"You qualify for none."

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

"Tekis Kariya

"Prince of Kannazuki.

"You were the first son of your parents, who were king and queen, and so was the one who was first in line to the throne, being the eldest. They, wanting to make you the greatest king there was, trained you in everything that was needed for being a king. Politics, swordsmanship, chivalry, knighthood, economics, war, and you were good at attending to their wishes, excelling in everything. But despite everything, since you learned so much at such an early age, you matured mentally quite quicker than normal, and didn't want to be king. Thus you became rebellious and oft skipped your classes to wander around the kingdom, most notably the garden of the Kiiroibara family.

"There you met the girl you came to love among the red spider lilies. She provided you the comfort and relief from your life as the eldest son of the king and you found yourself constantly heading back to the glade of red spider lilies for her. Yet you have defied your parents' wishes for you to be a king, and defied it you did completely when you agreed to the young gardener's reckless decision to run away. Your agreement not only resulted to her death, but also yours.

"Your cowardly way of escaping reality. In her death, you decided to throw away everything and kill yourself. Suicide is one of the deadliest sins.

"But when you took your sword into your chest, it was not a despairing act. Not an act of hopelessness that you'll never meet her again. Rather, it was an act of hope that you'd meet her again. Your love is honest and true."

The yama hit the prince on his head, who grunted softly in surprise as the light came back to his eyes.

"To ascend to heaven, to rest in the ground, to be born anew—

"I would've had you ascend to heaven, but we both know that you'll find no happiness there."

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

"Return once more to the realm of the living. Live happily and with joy. Smile and dance under the silver curtains of moonlight and among the red spider lilies. The poltergeists shall play for you a ballad of high spirits, and the wind shall hug your wings.

"Live happily ever after."

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

When the prince awoke he heard the larks singing a morning tune to themselves, and spears of light pierced through the petals of the cherry blossoms providing them shade. He found the young gardener whom he loved lying on his lap, fast asleep. Smiling serenely, he stroked her long black hair until she woke up.

The young gardener rose and put her back to the cherry blossom behind on their backs and looked at him, smiling joyfully.

* * *

><p>Hikari: "Ah. They kissed again."<p>

Inori couldn't keep her smile on. Rather, there was a blush on her face. "Well, it's the ending. It would be a bit unfitting if they kissed in the middle of the play but didn't do anything as significant in the ending, so I sort of… suggested it."

Hikari stared at the class rep, who was behaving unusually.

* * *

><p>Cecil couldn't stop blushing the first time the kiss happened, and she wasn't successful the second time around, either. Neither was Nono, Cecil noticed. Hell, not even Tei.<p>

The curtains fell, and the whole audience gave applause.

* * *

><p>Excerpt from the story in its original format:<p>

And they lived happily ever after.

* * *

><p>Hikari handed Sara and Aira water bottles. "Great job out there!" she said.<p>

Aira took the bottle thankfully. "Thanks! It wasn't easy at all."

Hikari looked at Sara. "Perhaps too great a job."

Sara smiled apologetically. "I got too into the part," she reasoned, blushing.

Hikari looked at them both.

Sara and Aira looked away innocently.

Inori: "Come on, the play was a success. Great job, everyone!"

All of class 1-1 cheered.

* * *

><p>Cecil was practicing by herself when Sara, Aira, and Hikari entered the clubroom.<p>

"We're back!" Aira exclaimed as she went in. "Man, I'm beat."

Cecil: "Welcome back. You were both amazing in that play, and Hikari-chan did a great job directing it."

Sara: "Thank you!"

Hikari: "Thanks!"

Sara: "Hm? Where's Tei?"

Tei entered the room. "I'm right here!"

Cecil: "Where were you?"

Tei: "I was talking to Himeko-san! Then I was caught by Nono and made to help with closing the café down."

Aira: "Alright! Tomorrow's our concert, so we're staying here overnight to practice!"

Ms. Yamanaka entered the room. "I brought sleeping bags for everyone!"

Tei: "Nono gave us snacks too! Come have them with us, Sawa-chan!"

Sara: "I hope Yuka'll be fine."

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I don't own Phantom of the Opera.<p>

Oh god Sara you yurikko

If you were wondering why it's a musical play, it's because I was watching Phantom of the Opera. This was a lot of fun to write; although, I really didn't expect I'd turn it into a musical play so I was almost lost there. I didn't originally plan on inserting "All I Ask of You" into the play, but then I realized just how much the song fit into the story. Regarding the story, I hope it was to everyone's liking! Maybe one day I'll actually write it fully and properly. I might have strayed too far from the K-ON feel this chapter, but I think it's worth it, since it was fun to write. I even managed to somehow fit in one of the background characters. (Just a foreshadowing tip, she's not just a random background character that's text filler.) Anyway, I hope you had fun reading this chapter! Next chapter is the concert! Look forward to it!

PS: Just in case you missed it from last chapter, character profiles can be found in my profile.


	10. Episode 10: First Concert!

Keion!

Episode 10: First Concert!

* * *

><p>Back when I was a child, father would usually come home late at night, tired from work. Even then, there at home, he still worked. Even when mother went to sleep with everybody else, he would continue working. I'd usually wake up past midnight to see him still working dedicatedly. I would sing to my father, then, and he'd smile happily before ruffling my hair and walking me back to my bed, promising that he'd sleep soon.<p>

These days, on the rare occasion that my mother would come home from her overseas job, one of the first things that she usually asks me to do for her was to sing, and I would happily oblige. When one of my many siblings woke up from their nightmares, they'd ask me to sing them back to a gentle sleep. I'd happily do it for them, of course.

I've been told that I hold an immense natural talent for many things, but it was with singing that I shined the brightest.

There's something about singing I can't help but love. Maybe it was about the smiles I start seeing when I sing. It was a wonderful feeling when I realized that I could make people happy with my voice.

That was the reason why I wanted to be an idol. I wanted to make people smile. I do still want to, but it's just a cloudy faraway dream. Maybe I'll be able to reach for it someday, but right now, I just want to enjoy the time with the wonderful friends I found in our small Light Music Club.

I want to make memories with them, precious memories to cherish in my heart.

* * *

><p>The curtains rose to reveal the performing band. Five people: the drummer, the pianist, the guitarist, the bassist, and the vocalist. The audience clapped their hands.<p>

The vocalist, whom the people recognized as yesterday's play's star, took the mic with a smile and eyed the audience.

"We are Coccoro."

* * *

><p>Some time earlier~<p>

Cecil woke up to the wonderful smell of pancakes even before Sara called.

Sara: "Everyone! Good morning! Wake up!"

Tei's nose seemed to move, and she immediately jerked up in her sleeping bag. "Pancakes!"

Hikari went out of her sleeping bag groggily, rubbing her eyes before putting on her glasses. "You made breakfast?"

Sara smiled. "It seemed like a good idea, since everyone already ate the strawberry cake last night."

Aira yawned. "You mean devoured."

Cecil: "You were the one who ate the most, Aira-kun."

Aira: "Shut up."

Sara: "Come on, eat up. We're going to need the energy."

Hikari shivered. "Ahhh. I'm so nervous. I was pretty confident before, but with the concert this close I'm starting to have doubts."

Aira laughed. "I know what you mean."

Tei smiled. "It's our first concert, after all."

Hikari: "Aren't you nervous, Tei-chan?"

Tei: "Not really."

Cecil: "Should we practice at least one go before the concert?"

Sara: "Let's do that."

* * *

><p>Tachibana Himeko was a producer for a new and small idol production company, 201 Pro. She actually was a graduate from Sakura High. Today is the second day of its cultural festival. She originally didn't plan to go again today, but after the school play, if she could call it that, yesterday, she decided she'd go again, especially since the eager girl named Tei said that the Sara from yesterday was actually part of the Light Music Club, and that they would be performing today.<p>

She wanted to see it, but I didn't plan on bringing two of her idols with her.

Sorami Mika, a petite girl with long dyed blonde hair and sharp grey eyes, was the one who caught wind of Himeko's plan, and forced the producer to take her with her. Mika had somehow obtained Sakura High's uniform that fit her, and was twirling around in it in front of the gate, sparkling in adorability.

Mika: "What do you think?"

Himeko stared at the girl silently before she sighed. "Casual clothes would have been fine."

Mika: "School uniforms are a must for schools, right?"

Himeko: "The public generally comes to the cultural festival, so uniforms aren't required."

Makigami Nessa, a tall girl with long black hair, black eyes, and noticeably dark skin, laughed. "Didn't you hear Eri-san saying she wanted to go too?" she said as they entered the school.

Himeko: "She's the secretary, so we needed her to stay there."

Mika shrugged. "Sucks for her." Then she smiled. "Say, a cultural festival is basically just a school festival, right?"

Himeko: "Yeah."

Mika grabbed Himeko's and Nessa's shoulders and pushed them forward. "If it's a festival, we gotta have fun!"

They soon came up to a crowd surrounding something. "Oh, wonder what they're doing?"

Himeko: "I think they were doing magic tricks yesterday."

Mika jumped eagerly. "I wanna see!"

Nessa: "What kind of magic tricks, Himeko-san?"

Himeko smiled. "You'll understand when you see, I suppose."

"But I can't see!" Mika tried to see by jumping up and down, but the crowd of people and her height proved that ineffective. She stopped to think until a little girl riding her dad's shoulders gasped in glee. Mika grinned. "Hime-chan! Lift me on your shoulders! On your shoulders!"

Himeko: "Eh! No way!"

Mika: "Come on, why not!"

Himeko: "It's embarrassing, you know."

Mika: "It's not embarrassing at all."

Himeko: "Maybe not for you, but it is for me!"

Mika pouted.

Nessa: "Now, now. You can ride on my shoulders instead."

Nessa knelt down as Himeko watched, and Mika eagerly got on her shoulders. "All right, go up," Mika said excitedly.

Nessa: "And up I go—woah, you're light."

Himeko: "You're such a kid."

After watching the magic tricks and Himeko forcing Mika to get down from Nessa's shoulders, they visited other stalls outside; Mika almost getting lost whenever she found something interesting, Nessa caring more about food, since she apparently didn't have breakfast.

Himeko sighed as she took a look at her watch. "Ah. It's almost time."

Mika and Nessa looked up, popsicles in their hands. "Time for what?" Nessa asked.

Himeko: "Did you forget why I was even here in the first place?"

Mika: "A concert, right?"

Himeko nodded. "I'd like it if you two come, too. One of their members could possibly be our third idol in the close future!"

Nessa: "Say, wasn't the President planning to make a three-person idol unit to flagship the company?"

Himeko: "Yup. And from what I saw of her yesterday, she's the idol we're looking for before we go forward with that plan."

Mika: "You mean me, Nessa, and her are going to be that three-idol unit?"

Himeko raised a finger. "Possibly."

Mika grinned. "What're we waiting for, then? Let's get to the auditorium!"

* * *

><p>Hikari and Tei peeked at the audience from behind the curtains.<p>

Tei looked excited. "So many people!"

Hikari: "Yeah."

Cecil sighed to steady herself. "It's our first concert, huh," she muttered.

Aira pumped a fist into the air. "It's time to show the fruit of our efforts!"

Sara nodded, and punched the air above her. Everyone else followed suit. "Yeah!"

* * *

><p>When they entered the auditorium, the place was packed. The concert hadn't begun yet; the curtains were still down. "Woah. It's full," Mika remarked.<p>

Nessa: "There're seats over there, come on."

Mika and Nessa went ahead; just as Himeko was about to move, she noticed someone to her right. That someone had short brown hair and an unforgettably innocent face that beamed when it saw Himeko. "Hime-chan!" Hirasawa Yui called, launching herself at her old classmate.

"Y-Yui!" Himeko exclaimed in surprise as Yui hugged her.

"Long time no see, Hime-chan!" Yui said excitedly.

Himeko sighed knowingly, giving up. "What're you doing here?"

Yui let go of Himeko and crossed her arms, her expression looking proud. "I'll be teaching here next year!"

Himeko was struck silent, then. It took a full moment before she turned away, slapping a hand over her mouth, trying hard not to laugh.

Yui: "That's mean, Hime-chan!"

Himeko: "Sorry, sorry. I just couldn't imagine you as a teacher."

Yui: "Prepare to be surprised, then! I worked hard to get here!"

Himeko: "So, you're planning to be the supervisor of the Light Music Club too, and you're here to watch their concert?"

Yui: "Woah, Hime-chan! Are you psychic?"

Himeko just smiled.

Yui: "I've actually met them before, thanks to Sawa-chan; this is their first concert, too. What are you doing here, Hime-chan?"

Himeko: "Eh? Uhm, business stuff. Mostly."

While they were discussing how each other's lives had been, they were interrupted by the announcement that the Light Music Club was going to perform. The red curtains slowly rose, revealing the five-person band. The audience clapped their hands.

The vocalist, whom the people recognized as yesterday's play's star, took the mic with a smile and eyed the audience.

"We are Coccoro.

"_Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!_  
>"<em>Bubbles drifting and floating<em>  
>"<em>Bubbles sparkling and twinkling<em>  
>"<em>Gently, softly<em>

"_The wind carries these feelings of joy_  
>"<em>To my heart yearning for precious memories<em>  
>"<em>Mellow and curious<em>  
>"<em>Fingers searching for yours<em>  
>"<em>The sun's warm light make the bubbles sparkle<em>

"_Soon, they will go pop!_  
>"<em>But that's okay, we can keep making more!<em>

"_Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!_  
>"<em>Bubbles drifting and floating<em>  
>"<em>Bubbles sparkling and twinkling<em>  
>"<em>Slowly, calmly<em>

"_Let's create bubbles together"_

* * *

><p>The audience cheered and gave applause when the song finished, some of them even standing. Shining with sweat, Sara was smiling a very happy smile when she spun to face the others, who smiled back, before she went back to the mic. "Thank you! That was our first song, 'Bubble'," she said, "Once again, we're Coccoro. Introducing our group, we have Aira on bass!"<p>

Aira played a short melody on her bass guitar, and bowed her head. "Hello! I'm Michiru Aira! Thank you for listening to us today!" Her sparkling charm seemed overflowing, and the audience cheered loudly.

Sara: "On the lead guitar, we have Cecil!"

"H-hello!" Cecil stuttered nervously. Then she remembered that she should play a short melody on her guitar, and went ahead to do that skillfully. "My name is Cecil Jordan. Th-thank you for being here." More cheers.

Sara: "And on drums is Hikari!"

Hikari banged at the drums a nice beat. "I'm Matsuoka Hikari," she said energetically. "Thanks for listening to us!" she added before whacking at the drums another beat. More cheers.

Sara: "Tei is on the keyboard!"

Tei played a quick and energetic melody on her keyboard before flashing a peace sign. "Matsuoka Tei! Thank you for seeing us!" More cheers.

"And finally, I'm our main vocalist, Kazumiya Sara. I'm sorry to say I have no instrument, but I insisted on doing just the vocals." Sara smiled. "We were really nervous as this was our first concert. When we woke up this morning we said we'd practice just one more time, but that ended up being five times.

"Well, anyway, we'll move on to our next song and keep going from there. Once again, thank you for listening to us!" Sara nodded at the others; Tei nodded back and started pressing keys. "Golden," Sara proclaimed.

* * *

><p>"<em>I wake up to the golden waves at the shore<em>  
>"<em>With a feeling of longing<em>

"_In those precious memories_  
>"<em>Etched onto the sky<em>  
>"<em>Your hand reaches out for mine<em>  
>"<em>Your hand that I long for, I will always grab it<em>

"_Our fingers intertwine, grasp each other tight_  
>"<em>The sky shines in that gold hue<em>

"_The distant clouds call me in their song_  
>"<em>As I grasp your hand, a myriad of gold light blasts through the heavens<em>  
>"<em>I wake up to the golden waves at the shore<em>  
>"<em>With a feeling of longing"<em>

It was a gentler song, one that the audience appreciated, a contrast to the more energetic "Bubble". The next song, "Hana Hanabi," went back to a livelier tune that got the audience back to cheering and clapping in tune with them.

"_Flowers floating down the river_  
>"<em>We walk with them, hands holding each other<em>  
>"<em>Flittering feelings, dancing hearts<em>

"_When suddenly, the fireworks head upwards_  
>"<em>To the dark, lonely sky<em>  
>"<em>Dazzling in the shape of a flower<em>

"_Flower fireworks_  
>"<em>Ah, love is so troublesome<em>  
>"<em>But I love it so much<em>  
>"<em>As the flowers swim away, fade away,<em>  
>"<em>We only hold to each other more"<em>

Cecil played the closing guitar solo skillfully; the audience was cheering even louder. Himeko smiled as she saw that Mika and Nessa had stood up to cheer with everybody else. When the song finished, the cheering blasted off, and the band rose and bowed.

Sara: "Everyone, thank you!"

* * *

><p>The sun was low when Aira, Tei, Hikari, and Cecil entered the clubroom.<p>

Aira: "Man, we were awesome!"

Cecil: "Yeah."

Hikari: "I suddenly feel silly feeling so nervous."

"There was no reason to be," Tei said, grinning. "I knew we would do great."

Sara was talking to a Tachibana Himeko, apparently an idol producer. Sara was shocked when the producer told them they were great and started talking to her. Tei had grinned and told everyone that they should go ahead to the clubroom.

Cecil and Aira served the ever-longed for snacks and tea while they waited for Sara to come back.

Tei: "I told Himeko-san that we had a concert today."

Hikari: "Didn't Sara say her dream was to be an idol?"

Aira: "I guess thanks to Tei, that dream's pretty much here."

Cecil put down her tea. There was a concerned look on her face.

Tei: "Cecirru?"

Aira smiled knowingly. "Don't worry. She won't take it."

Cecil looked at Aira, then nodded.

The door opened then, and Sara entered the room. "Great job out there, everyone!" she remarked.

Tei: "Sara-chan! How was it?"

Sara: "They asked me to be an idol for them."

Hikari: "And?"

Sara: "I… well, I refused."

Aira patted Cecil's shoulder. "See? I told you."

Tei: "Eh! Why!"

Hikari: "I thought it was your dream to be an idol?"

Sara laughed. "It is, it is. She gave me a calling card, too." She smiled and sat down with them. "Maybe I'll need the job someday. That way I can also help my mom provide for the family. It's still my dream job. But like I said before, it doesn't matter to me right now." Sara eyed everyone, and took a bite of her cake. "I want to enjoy these moments with everyone a bit longer."

Everyone was silent for a moment before they all smiled at each other.

Hikari grinned. "Cecil-chan, what is that? You look like you're about to cry!"

Cecil: "Sh-shut up! That's just you!"

Tei: "Ohhhh? Cecirru was so concerned about Sara leaving the group that she teared up about it?"

Cecil sniffed. "I knew Sara-san wouldn't accept; I just couldn't stop thinking 'what if she didn't?'"

Sara reached out to Cecil and held her hand. "You're so silly, Cecil." Cecil just blushed.

Aira: "Coccoro won't just go out in a tiny poof after such a great first concert!"

"Everyone, you did a great job out there!" Ms. Yamanaka exclaimed as she entered the room.

Sara: "Yamanaka-sensei!"

Hikari: "Thanks, Sawa-chan!"

Tei: "Sawa-chan! Come have cake with us!"

* * *

><p>Ahh, yay. Got that done. Sorry for being a bit late; I had finals. Now I normally wouldn't study, but my American History final was very scary so I had to force myself. So, anyway, yes, you heard that right! Yui is going to be a teacher in Sakura High next year! Hirasawa-sensei? Oh god, it's hard to imagine that even being said. Tachibana Himeko is the girl who sits next to Yui in the second season, and Nessa shares the surname of another of Yui's classmates, Makigami Kimiko, who is the one with noticeably darker skin and is the one who sat next to Yui during the graduation ceremony. Eri is Taki Eri, the girl with a side ponytail and sits in front of Satou Akane, who sits in front of Tachibana Himeko.<p>

Finally, the band's first time playing together! All the songs are original, and once again, I'm just pretending they sound good in Japanese. "Coccoro" comes from one of the songs in Aria's soundtrack, the one Athena sings in Aria: The Natural. It's also "kokoro," the Japanese word for "heart." Some people have also been misled to think that "coccoro" is the Italian word for "cute." All the idol business comes from the fact that I've been obsessed with The iDOLMaSTER lately. Writing the songs was quite a challenge, but the chapter was actually fun to write. I haven't decided as to what the next chapter will be about, but it'll come with no problem, especially seeing that it's vacation time for me. Like before, I wish I could make you guys hear music, but I can't do that through writing. I'm no musician either, so I can't just make the songs; I can only write the lyrics for them. But, still! I hope you had fun reading this chapter! Look forward to the next one!


	11. Episode 11: Story!

Keion!

Episode 11: Story!

* * *

><p>The concert was a huge success. There were many things that happened to prove this point. Coccoro became the talk of the school; the CDs Hikari proposed to be made sold very well. They were all practically celebrities; Hikari felt somewhat proud, but not without the bit of awkwardness. Cecil felt uncomfortable but was otherwise happy that the performance was loved. Tei didn't even seem to notice the attention.<p>

As popular as everyone was, though, not one of the three could match up to the stars of the school play: Sara and Aira, both of whom had fanclubs now, Aira's being the bigger one. Aira was now the most popular girl in school. Well, sort of. Aira had solidified the reputation of her princely charms. She wasn't very thrilled about this, though.

With the cultural festival over, everyone started to take it easy for the rest of the school year. That's what Hikari wanted to do anyway, but she was in a dilemma.

Hikari sighed as she leaned back on her chair. On her laptop's screen was the story she was almost finished with. Everything was going fine, except for one thing: the ending. It's not that she had no idea what could happen for the ending. Rather, Hikari was concerned about how she couldn't come up with a happier ending.

Once upon a time, a young girl met a friendly witch in a flower field. The witch, outcast for a reason she cannot even understand, was surprised at the company, and soon they were the loveliest of friends. But the young girl had a dark secret: her grandmother used her to make money as a prostitute.

The witch discovered this one night, and went berserk and killed several people in the process. As the witch and the young girl went into hiding, the village organized a witch hunt and successfully captured the witch. They tortured and burnt the witch on the stake, forcing the young girl to watch.

When the witch finally died, the people were cheering. But in between their cheers came a large cracking sound; the dam that protected the village broke and the river that they've held off for lifetimes flooded in and destroyed everything.

The young girl was also swept up in the flood, but something warm and tender grabbed her hand, and in her unconsciousness she saw were white wings glowing with a gentle light.

When the young girl came to, it was in the flower field that she and the witch met. She realized that none of what happened was a dream, and she cried. She fell to her knees, and cried. She hung her head, and cried. Soon, she became part of the flower field. A black, poisonous flower; a deadly flower that tended to all other flowers nearby it.

Hikari pouted as she looked through the story again. It was incredibly depressing. It wasn't like she was a depressing person herself; she was far from it. So what was wrong? Why couldn't her stories end happily? The story she wrote for the school play ended happily enough.

She sighed again, giving up, and went to bed.

* * *

><p>She was idly staring at the ceiling when Aira and Sara entered the classroom. "It's so coooold!" Aira shivered. "Whatever happened to global warming?" she added as she sat down, Hikari walking up to greet them.<p>

Sara smiled. "It's natural for winter to be cold."

Hikari: "Good morning, Sara-san, Ai-kun."

Sara: "Good morning."

Aira shivered again. "Good morning." Then she looked as though she just remembered something. "Oh, by the way, Hikari."

Hikari: "Hm?"

Aira grabbed Hikari's cheeks with her bare hands. Hikari yelped in surprise from the sudden rush of cold through her face. "Ahhh, so warm, you're so warm," Aira said blissfully.

"Stop that!" Hikari yelled, then slapped her hands onto Aira's cheeks, who yelped loudly.

"What's this?" Tei remarked as she entered their classroom with Cecil. "So noisy this early in the morning?" she said with a smile.

Sara: "Ah, Tei, Cecil. Good morning."

Tei looked at the two grabbing each other's faces, then grinned as she faced Cecil. Cecil blocked Tei's hands before they reached her face. Soon enough the two calmed down, and Tei brought up the subject of Aira's growing fanclub yet again.

"I didn't want to be a prince." Aira put her hands behind her head as she pouted. "It's not like I'm unthankful for their support, but I want to be admired as a princess."

Tei: "Tsk, tsk, tsk. That won't work, Ai-kun!"

Aira: "Why not?"

Tei: "That's Sara's role."

Sara: "Hey."

Aira sighed. "Whatever," she said as she laid her head on a hand. "By the way, is it just me? I feel like I'm being watched."

"It's not just you," Cecil pointed to the classroom's windows from the hallway; there was a girl with short brown hair and a green ribbon, indicating that she was a second year, thus their senior. Aira faced that direction, and the girl seemed to blush, gasp and immediately ducked out of view.

Hikari: "What's she doing?"

Tei: "A member of the Aira Fanclub?"

Aira: "Shut up about the club already!"

Hikari smirked. "Maybe you're a member of that fanclub, Tei?" she teased.

Tei giggled. "I am," she said in a tone that suggested that it was nothing unusual.

Silence came over everyone.

Tei laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding!"

Sara: "It didn't sound like a joke coming from you."

Hikari: "Seriously."

* * *

><p>Later after school, the group was in the clubroom, having tea and some pudding.<p>

"Ah. There she is again," Cecil said, looking at the clubroom's door. Like she said, the second year from earlier was watching them from behind the door. Everyone faced that direction, and she once more blushed and ducked out of sight. "What's she doing?"

Hikari stood up, walked to the door, and pulled it open. The second year fell down into the clubroom. "What are you doing, Aoi-senpai?" Hikari asked.

Aoi immediately got to her feet, hands raised to the air in front of her. "I-I'm no one suspicious!" she stuttered. "I'm a c-certified member of the Aira Fan Club!" Blushing fiercely, she held out a card with Aira's face on it; written on the card was her name, "Suminoya Aoi."

Aira slammed her face onto the desk.

Tei smirked. "That's a great reaction, Ai-kun."

Sara smiled at the newcomer. "Aoi-senapi, would you like to have tea with us?"

Cecil: "You're inviting her!"

* * *

><p>"This is delicious," Aoi exclaimed as she sipped the apple tea.<p>

Sara: "I'm glad you like it."

Aoi put the tea down and sighed. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself when I saw Michiru-san pass by."

Hikari: "So you admit to stalking?"

Aira laughed awkwardly. "I-it's okay. I'm happy you like me so much," she said, looking away.

Cecil: "Hikari, if you knew who she was you should've told us earlier."

Hikari: "Sorry, sorry. I was surprised myself."

Sara: "So who is she?"

Aoi gasped. "I-I'm Suminoya Aoi," she stuttered.

Hikari nodded. "She works as a maid for us; she's something of a big sister to me."

Aira: "A big sister?"

Hikari smiled. "She's a bit awkward and shy, but she's really reliable and very kind."

Aoi blushed. "Hikari-sama, I'm not someone that amazing."

Tei took a look at the Aira Fan Club member card. "Member number one?"

Aoi fidgeted with her fingers. "I… I'm actually the president of the fan club."

Aira fell down from her chair. Tei smirked. "That's a nice reaction, Ai-kun."

"Mi-Michiru-san!" Aoi called loudly.

Aira swallowed nervously as she slowly got back up. "Wh-what is it?"

Aoi: "P-pwease go on a date with me!"

Tei: (Pwease?)

Sara and Hikari did epic spit-takes. Cecil was unfortunate enough to have been in front of Sara.

Aoi gasped loudly then, and blushed full red. "I-I'm sorry! I honestly didn't mean to say that!"

Sara was wiping Cecil's face with a handkerchief. "So, what was it that you wanted?"

Aoi took out a piece of paper. "P-please sign this, Michuru-san!" she said, almost adorably.

Aira smiled awkwardly in response.

Cecil: "An autograph?"

Tei: "Ai-kun's really a celebrity now!"

Aoi: "And write: 'From Prince Aira'!"

Aira: "Ehhh! Are you serious!"

Hikari looked at the scene, taken aback. (What happened to her dependable big sister image?)

* * *

><p>The next day after school, the Light Music Club, by Tei's decision, were having a picnic in the park since it was somewhat warmer.<p>

"You really made her happy," Hikari said as she bit on a cookie.

Aira sighed, Sara patting her back with a smile. "I feel like the whole experience sucked out my soul."

Tei: "Now now, you're exaggerating, Prince Aira."

"Stop calling me a prince already…" Aira muttered. She sipped on the juice Sara handed to her and laid her back onto the tree. "I don't want to be a prince. Actually, I'd much rather be a princess."

Hikari nodded. "Yeah. You told us yesterday."

Aira took out a shoujo manga. Smiling, she began reading lines from the comic book.

Shoujo protagonist Aira: "Wh-what are you all doing here!"

Shoujo rude male antagonist Aira: "Heh. It's nothing personal. We're just doing a favor for someone."

Shoujo protagonist Aira: "H-Help! Someone!"

Prince Aira: "Stop right there!"

Shoujo protagonist Aira: "T-The Prince?"

Shoujo rude male antagonist Aira: "Who cares if he's a prince? Kick his ass!"

Prince Aira: "Try it."

Aira: Sound effects!

Shoujo rude male antagonist Aira: "Shit. D-damn you! We'll be back!"

Prince Aira: "I'll be looking forward to it."

Shoujo protagonist Aira: "Kyun!"

Tei: "Doki doki?"

Shoujo protagonist Aira: ("This must be… love!")

Aira was emitting a different kind of sparkle as she read the lines; her expression was dreamy.

Everyone else aside from Sara was looking at her with an unamused expression.

Aira: "She's so lucky! I want an encounter like this, too!"

Hikari: "Please don't do that again."

Aira: "Oh, leave me alone."

Sara chuckled. "What's wrong with it? Princess Aira has its charms, too."

They laughed, but were interrupted by an angry voice. "Hey! What the hell, girl? Your shoulder bumps into me and not a word of apology?"

Sara tilted her head curiously. "Hm? That voice sounds familiar."

Aira stood up quickly. "Not them again," she remarked as she headed towards the voice. "I'll be right back." Everyone else followed suit, concerned. What they saw was a group of four boys surrounding a girl.

Hikari: "Probably not the best time to say it, but that's so cliché."

Cecil: "Sara-san, do you know them?"

Sara nodded. "Quite some time ago, this new violent gang of thugs came into town." She laughed softly. "Their reign was short, though; a year before you came to Japan, Cecil, a middle school girl beat them up so badly they fled the place."

Tei gasped. "Isn't that Aoi-senpai?"

Aoi, frightened, was clutching her bag to her chest. "I-I'm sorry."

"Wh-what!" Hikari exclaimed, and she started to run, but Sara's hand on her shoulder stopped her.

The thugs growled angrily, then Aira stepped in, yelling. "Hey! Stop that!"

Rude thug villain #1: "The hell's with you, brat?"

Aira: "Leave her alone."

Aoi: "M-Michiru-san!"

Rude thug villain #2: "You shitty kid. You're looking to get hurt, aren't you?"

Rude thug villain #3: "Heh. Show him."

"Try it," Aira dared the man as he walked closer.

Cecil grabbed Aira's shoulder. "A-Aira."

Aira shook her head. "Stand back, Cecil. I can't stand people like this." Cecil obliged.

"Stupid kid!" the thug yelled as he threw a punch. Aira tilted her head clean of the hit. Another punch, Aira ducked low. The thug tried a clumsy roundhouse kick, Aira grabbed the foot and, whirled, and the man's head snapped back. He fell to his knees, grabbing his pained face. Blood dripped from his nose.

The other three stepped back, then the one who hadn't said anything yet immediately stepped forward. "Yo! Yo! Yo! Hey man!" With a crotch grab and a raised hand, it was a classic to look at. Aira threw the man down to the floor behind her. The third one tried to attack Aira from behind with a fist; he hurtled away when a kick hit his chest.

The fourth guy stepped back again. "Y-you—" His eyes widened in recognition.

Aira struck a fighting stance. The thug grunted, then drew a knife, eliciting terrified gasps from everyone else. Then he froze when he saw Sara.

"Shit." he swore as he withdrew the weapon and the other three lifted themselves up. "D-damn you! We'll be back!"

Aira left her stance. "I'll be looking forward to it." She glared at the four who were walking away.

When all that was done, everyone exhaled loudly in relief. Then Aoi ran towards Aira, grabbing her hands. "Mi-Michiru-san! I can't believe you came to my rescue! You really are a prince!" She squealed loudly. "I'll never forget today!"

Aira fell to her knees in despair. Sara patted her back with a smile.

Hikari: "That's a good ending. Isn't it?"

Tei giggled. "Yep. Not so much for the prince who wants to be a princess, though."

Cecil: "I knew Aira-san was a good martial artist, but I didn't know she was this skilled."

Hikari smiled thoughtfully. "A prince, huh?"

* * *

><p>Tomorrow came. The cold came strong again today. Hikari was in the clubroom first after classes ended; she brought her laptop to write. She was in the middle of the story when Sara came in. "Hello, Sara-san," Hikari greeted her. "Where's Ai-kun?"<p>

Sara: "Aira? She went to get the heater she asked for in an electronics shop. Tei came with her, and Cecil still has things to do in her class."

Hikari: "Ahh. I see."

Sara lay down her bag. "Should I prepare tea while we wait for them?"

Hikari: "Sure. Thanks."

The warm lemon tea made Hikari's freezing body relax so much with the warmth that she almost fell. She exhaled blissfully. "Heavenly, as always."

Sara laughed. "Come on, you're exaggerating."

Hikari smiled. "You think so?"

There was a moment of relaxed silence between them before Hikari thought of something. "Sara-san," she called.

"Hikari." Sara blinked at her.

Hikari noticed that, and for a moment forgot what she was going to say. "Y-yes?"

Sara smiled. "Just Sara is fine. We've known each other for some time, haven't we?"

"Really?" Hikari scratched her chin. "Then… Sara-chan."

Sara smiled. "Hikari."

Hikari: "Oh? I've never heard Cecil-chan call you without the –san before."

Sara laughed softly. "Cecil's… quite stubborn." She eyed Hikari. "By the way, Hikari."

Hikari was taken aback by the clear golden eyes, and she blushed uncontrollably. "Y-yes?"

Sara: "You were going to say something to me?"

Hikari: "Ah! Er, well, I'd like to know what you think of the story I'm writing."

Sara: "Hm? Sure. I'd love to."

Grinning in joy, Hikari proceeded to tell Sara the story. It was something that sounded like an almost generic fantasy shoujo manga. When Hikari finally reached the ending, Sara stopped her with a giggle.

Sara: "Say, Hikari. Doesn't it all sound a bit too forced?"

Hikari laughed, "It does, doesn't it?" she agreed.

Sara tilted her head. "I'm guessing you're in some kind of dilemma?"

Hikari sighed and leaned back onto her chair. "Well, you know. I've been kind of worried recently."

Sara: "About what?"

"For some reason, I can only come up with tragic and bittersweet endings." Hikari shook her head. "I don't really understand it. Am I a depressing person, Sara-sa—er, Sara-chan?"

Sara shook her head, and smiled. "No, far from it." She leaned closer. "I'm not a story writer, but I think I can give you a few things to think about, since I am also a writer."

Hikari beamed. "Please let me hear them."

Sara: "Hikari, why do you write stories?"

Hikari was taken aback by the sudden question. "Eh? Er, well, because I want to, I guess?"

Sara laughed softly. "Come on, come on. Embarrassing remarks are allowed."

Hikari laughed awkwardly.

Sara leaned back. "What do I think of when I write my songs? Are my lyrics too cheesy? Is the melody fine? I hope it's catchy without being annoying?" Sara shook her head. "No, not really."

Hikari looked at Sara curiously.

Sara smiled. "I'm not writing my songs to show off to people. I'm not writing songs for them. I'm writing the songs that I want to hear." She eyed Hikari again. "I don't force myself to do anything; I write the song how I want it to be and how I feel it should be." Sara took a sip of her tea, and put it down. "Hikari, how do you want your stories to end? Why do you write stories?"

Hikari took the moment to think. Then she smiled, chuckled. "You're right. You're absolutely right. I've been overthinking it." She sighed. "I write the stories I want to read. All I want is a good ending that would make the audience feel something; it hardly matters if it's a sad or happy ending."

Sara looked happy. "Did I help?"

Hikari: "Yes! Thank you!"

Sara laid her head on a hand. "A show taught me this once." She pointed at Hikari. "Hikari."

Hikari: "Wh-what?"

Sara: "There is no beginning or ending to any tale. The only thing that exists is the way people relate, interact, and affect each other, and how that expands throughout the world. There is never an ending to the tale, Hikarin."

Hikari blinked, confused. "That's so confusing. What?"

Sara laughed. "Hikari. Why do you think there shouldn't be an ending to a story?"

Hikari stopped and though for a moment before she gave her answer, one finger up. "Because it's easier to attract attention by leaving the possibility for a sequel?"

Sara smiled. "That's hardly the answer I expected from you, Hikari."

Hikari: "Hey."

Sara: "You can find pretty much an infinite number of answers to that question, Hikari. But if I had to choose one…"

Hikari: "What is it?"

Sara: "Because it's fun."

Hikari: "Fun?"

Sara: "Yep."

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I do not own Durarara! or Baccano!<p>

Why do I write fanfiction? It's pointless. It's a waste of time. Whatever amount of skill and hardwork I put into a chapter of fanfiction is pointless. It'll never get published; it'll never gain me the recognition I dream to get.

Why do I persist in writing this K-ON fanfiction? I knew from the start it was a very risky move to post a story that featured only OCs for its main characters. Very few people, if any, would bother reading it, since they come to this place to read more about their favorite characters, not some strangers that they have to familiarize themselves with. Not to mention that creating even a single OC is often looked down upon in the fanfiction community.

Why?

Because it's fun.

But if it's just for fun, then why do I keep hoping for reviews to tell me where I'm wrong? They say people don't really ask for criticism; they only want praise. I can't deny that I do want praise, but I know I really look forward to proper criticism pointing out my every mistake. I cherish these criticisms more than any praise I get. And then I would always try to do my best to overcome those mistakes and keep writing this pointless drivel.

Why? Because I want to improve.

Why do I want to improve?

Why all this?

It all pretty much draws itself to one answer: it's because I love writing.

Well, not writing specifically. What I really love is telling the stories my mind loves to come up with.

I don't make stories for the audience. I didn't write this story for the reader. I write this story because I want to write it.

But well, all of that is unimportant. The real afterword starts here.

First off, apologies for not updating last week! My vacation started, so I was overcome with these powerful temptations of laziness. I will be, however, writing another chapter for this week before Christmas. It'd be awkward to post up a Christmas chapter after Christmas, after all. Anyway, you're probably curious. Hikari's dilemma was actually a dilemma I faced before. Why that essay after the story? Was I insulted by some Internet dude because I wrote OC fanfiction for K-ON and felt the need to rant? No, no, far from it. It was just me watching too much Aria and Tamayura, both shows that get me thoughtful and smiling whenever I watch them. I highly recommend both, especially Tamayura if you feel that you wanted something closer to K-ON, yet as thoughtful and wonderful as Aria. Well, anyway. I hope this chapter was fun to read! Please look forward to the following Christmas chapter!


	12. Episode 12: Christmas!

Keion!

Episode 12: Christmas!

* * *

><p>It was a few days before the Christmas during their second year of junior high.<p>

Although it was very cold, Aira had dragged Sara into climbing a hill, to see something wonderful, she said. The two were walking through a dark forest. Sara had a blindfold on; Aira held her hand as she guided her through the forest, Sara gripping Aira's hand hard. "Hey, Aira," she called, "where are we going?"

Aira: "Just wait for it. Don't take off that blindfold, either."

It only took a moment of silence and walking before Sara spoke up again, her voice trembling. "Aira! It's already late!" It was actually far late for someone like Sara, too, since she was someone who thought 9:00 was late; it was already around midnight. Aira had made Sara sneak out of the house for this trip.

Then they stopped walking. Aira let go of Sara's hand. "Don't take off the blindfold yet," Sara heard Aira say. "Lie down." Sara lay down on what apparently was a blanket. Then she felt Aira slowly untie her blindfold. "Happy birthday, Sara!" she exclaimed as the blindfold came off.

What Sara saw was the immense sky, dotted with thousands of tiny bright stars everywhere. She was speechless, in awe as she watched the lights twinkle. Sara had never once saw a sky this full of stars. It was amazing; it was truly beautiful to look at.

Aira's grinning face appeared. "And an early Merry Christmas too!"

But it wasn't her birthday… oh. It was already midnight. Of course. Trying to hold back happy tears, Sara managed a small laugh. In front of the wonderful scenery of stars, Aira's face laughed, too.

Those clear black eyes, the short, boyish, but surprisingly soft black hair, and her cheerful grin. It was the face of her neighbor, the face of her closest friend. The face of the best friend who had been with her all her life. The face of her one and only prince.

Aira kept grinning as Sara slowly lifted herself up. "Did I surprise you?"

Sara smiled and nodded. Then it disappeared. "Aira, where's your scarf?"

Aira shrugged. "Dunno. I probably lost it."

Sara sighed knowingly, then moved closer, taking off part of her scarf. Aira looked at her curiously as Sara gently wrapped that part of the scarf around her neck. Sara smiled at her. "It's cold, Aira."

Aira grinned. "Not anymore," she replied, tapping the pink scarf.

Sara giggled and took Aira's hand, both of them lying down to face and admire the star-filled bliss above in the sky.

* * *

><p>Sara laughed softly. Aira took a look at her from tuning her bass. "What?" It wasn't exactly right to be laughing without any apparent reason after all, so maybe Sara was laughing at her?<p>

Sara shook her head. "Nothing," she replied innocently.

The doors to the clubroom opened, and in came Tei and Hikari, yelling, "Happy birthday, Sara!"

Sara: "Thank you!"

Cecil appeared next, blushing in the same special maid costume she wore back in the school festival. "H-happy birthday, Sara-san."

Sara smiled. "Thank you, Cecil."

After preparing tea and some convincing from Sara, Cecil was back in her school uniform. Once they finished their daily tea and snacks, Hikari counted to three, and Hikari, Tei, and Cecil brought out wrapped presents for Sara with another greeting of "Happy birthday!"

Sara gasped in delight. "Thanks!" Then she smiled apologetically. "Can I ask you to give it to me on Christmas instead, though?"

Cecil blinked. "Why?"

"Before you guys came in, Sawa-chan told us she was planning a Christmas party for everybody," Aira explained. Then she brought out a piece of paper. "Date: December 24th; Place: Mio-chan's new home."

Tei looked at the piece of paper. "Ohhh. I'm guessing Yui-senpai wrote this?"

Hikari: "Yui-senpai?"

Aira nodded. "Yep! We're invited to Houkago Tea Time's Christmas party!"

Cecil: "So we'll celebrate Sara-san's birthday along with it?"

"I think that's what we should do," Sara said, then she giggled, "It'll be easier, and you wouldn't have to buy two gifts for me," she teased.

Tei: "Alright, then! I'll be buying two gifts for Sara-chan!"

Hikari: "I'm going to do the same!"

Cecil: "I-I'm going to buy three, then!"

Sara: "Stop that! I was just kidding!"

Aira: "Should we bring anything?"

Cecil: "How about food?"

Sara: "Yamanaka-sensei said we didn't need to worry about it."

Tei: "How about gifts?"

Aira: "Ah. That's right, she said they'll be doing a gift exchange, too."

Sara smiled. "I'm looking forward to that."

Cecil looked excited. "And we'll be meeting Houkago Tea Time again too!"

Sara: "Yes!"

Hikari: "Mio-chan would be Akiyama-senpai, right? Did Sawa-chan give us an address?"

Aira nodded. "Yup."

Tei: "Let's go buy gifts now, then!"

* * *

><p>Shopping at the plaza~<p>

The group split up into groups; Tei with Hikari, Aira with Sara, and Cecil, as she insisted, was by herself.

Tei hummed thoughtfully. "What should I get?"

Hikari: "Don't get anything weird."

Tei clapped her hands together. "I know!" She pointed to a toy. "What about this giant figure of a mantis?"

Hikari gasped in horror. "N-no!"

Tei brought up a huge figure of a locust. "How about this?"

Hikari: "No way! Absolutely no way!"

Tei frowned and touched her chin with a finger thoughtfully. Then light bulb. "Ah!" She brought out a very realistically-moving puppet of a tarantula.

Hikari: "D-don't! Stop that!"

Then Yun, a classmate of Tei's, appeared. She raised a finger to her smiling lips as she looked at both of them.

Tei, Hikari: "S-sorry."

* * *

><p>Cecil had her eyes glued to a rabbit on a shirt that looked an atrocious lot like Barnaby when an unusual person in the same uniform as hers caught her eye. It was a tall slender girl with long pink—well, sort of; it was pretty much white—princess-like hair and pink eyes. She had a mysterious smile on as she thanked a store employee.<p>

Cecil: (Not that I'm one to talk, but she must be some kind of super foreigner!)

Then the "super foreigner" made eye contact with her, and then smiled. Cecil flinched.

The "super foreigner" walked towards her with a friendly but somehow still mysterious smile.

Cecil swallowed. "H-hello," she nervously greeted in English.

Super foreigner: "Kamusta? Ang lamig ngayon, noh?"

Cecil: (The hell language is that!)

Super foreigner: "Ah, mga apat na araw pa, pero Maligayang Pasko! May plano ka ba na gawin?"

Cecil: (Huh? Eh? Wha—?)

Super foreigner: "Ahaha, bibili ka rin ba nang mga damit? Ano bang magandang suotin sa panahon na 'to?"

Cecil: (S-someone help me!)

A girl with shoulder-length wavy brown hair, the employee from before, appeared from behind the super foreigner, grabbing her shoulder. "Inori-san, we're in Japan, so speak Japanese, okay?" she said nicely before leaving. Inori laughed melodically as she waved at her.

There was a moment of silence that was filled with Inori's mysterious smile before Cecil broke it.

Cecil: "Y-you mean all that was just a joke?"

Inori smiled her trademark smile. "Yes. I'm sorry," she apologized. "You kept staring at me, so I couldn't help myself." She took a blushing Cecil's hands. "You are Cecil Jordan from the Light Music Club, right?"

Cecil: "Y-yes?"

Inori: "You and everyone else were truly incredible during the concert!"

Cecil smiled awkwardly. "T-thanks…"

"Ah!" Inori gasped, letting go of Cecil's hands. "I'm terribly sorry; where are my manners?" She bowed. "I am Houraisan Inori."

Cecil: "Oh! You were the shinigami from the school play?"

Inori nodded. "Yes, I was."

Cecil bowed. "It's nice to meet you."

Inori smiled. "Likewise."

Insert brief intermission not worthy of a line break here.

Inori: "So you're shopping for a gift for a gift exchange in a Christmas party?"

Cecil nodded. "Yes. I had already bought a gift before I saw you."

Inori smiled. "Do you think it's destiny?"

Cecil: "D-des—?"

"Ah! There's Cecil." a familiar voice, Sara's, called. She was already with everyone else. Cecil and Inori headed towards them.

Hikari: "Ah! Inori-chan!"

Sara: "Inori-san!"

Inori: "Hikari-san Kazumiya-san, Michiru-san, hello."

Aira: "Yo!"

Tei: "Ino and Cecirru? Not a pair I thought I'd ever see!"

Inori smiled, "What a wonderful coincidence! I didn't think I would meet all of Coccoro here today!"

Aira laughed. "You say that like we're some sort of super celebrities."

Hikari: "Inori-chan, you know you could always just meet us in the clubroom?"

* * *

><p>The day of the party, December 24th.<p>

It was still early in the morning; the party wasn't until evening, during Christmas Eve. Sara and Aira decided to take a look at the place for the party. They weren't far from Sara's place when they found it. It wasn't far. Rather, it was just…

Aira: "It's just around the corner."

Sara: "That's nice."

Aira assumed a dreamy state. "I live this close to Akiyama-san? That's wonderful!"

Sara smiled. "Seeing as it's this close, I could help prepare for the party!"

"Ah! Sara-chan and Aira-san!" someone gasped in surprise.

Sara: "Ui!"

Aira: "Ui-senpai!"

Ui was carrying bags of what appeared to be ingredients for cooking. Aira offered to help, Ui thanking her. "What are you two doing here this early?" Ui asked them.

"We decided we'd take a look at the place first," Sara replied, then smiled. "We didn't think it'd be this close, though."

Ui: "Close?"

Aira: "Sara lives just around the corner."

Ui: "That's great!"

"Are you here to help prepare for the party?" Sara asked curiously. Ui nodded, and Sara suddenly looked eager. "Can I help?"

Ui gave her a delighted smile. "Sure!"

Then the door opened, and Mio came out in sleepwear. "So cooold," she shivered, heading towards the mailbox. It was empty; then she froze when she noticed Ui, Sara, and Aira outside the gate. They waved awkwardly at her. "G-good morning," Mio stuttered, face red, then rushed into the house.

Sara: "You did tell her you were going to come early in the morning, right?"

Ui: "Y-yes, I believe I did."

After a few moments, a slightly disheveled Mio-that-wasn't-in-her-sleepwear finally let them in.

Mio laughed awkwardly. "S-sorry, I forgot you were going to come early."

Ui smiled. "It's okay." Then she looked around. "Where's Ritsu-san?"

Mio sighed. "She's still asleep."

Aira: "Ritsu-san? Tainaka-san?"

Mio nodded. "We live together," she explained. The lack of expression on Aira's face and an "Ohh." flustered her. "It's nothing like that!"

Ui: "Ritsu-san's job's pay is too low, so she can't afford her own place."

Mio: "So she's stuck living with me."

Aira: "Ohh, I see."

Mio sighed, and then smiled. "With that out of the way, why are you two here?" she asked Aira and Sara. After some explaining, they started on preparing for the Christmas party. Aira was dragged into it; Sara put her in charge of decorations. Sara and Ui started on cooking, while Mio cleaned and decided to help with decorating too, much to Aira's joy.

Ritsu woke up later, and after some scolding from Mio, got dressed and helped out with cooking the food. Some time later Aira, Ritsu, and Mio went out to buy some ingredients and drinks, getting lunches for everyone while they were at it.

It was already noon when everything was done.

Ritsu went to get the door when the doorbell rang. "Ah! You're early this time!" she exclaimed when it turned out to be Yui with Ms. Yamanaka and Azusa.

Yui: "Hello, Ricchan!"

Azusa: "Good evening!"

Ms. Yamanaka: "Good evening!"

Ui: "Azusa-chan! Onee-chan! Sawako-sensei!"

Yui jumped on Ui with a hug. "Uuuii!"

Ritsu invited them in. They were greeted by a huge table of lots and lots of food, all sparkling with delicious that it made everyone's mouths water.

Azusa: "W-woah."

Ms. Yamanaka: "You guys really went all out."

Yui: "Uwaaaah! Everything looks amazing!"

Aira appeared, carrying more dishes. "Oh! Azusa-senpai, Yui-senpai, Sawa-chan."

"Ah! Welcome!" Sara exclaimed when she saw them. She smiled. "It happened that the place was close to ours, so we decided to help out," she explained when she noticed their curious stares.

The doorbell rang, next came in Mugi and Cecil.

Mugi looked happy, as always. "We met on the train, so we decided to go together," she explained.

The next guests were Hikari and Tei, along with Jun, and two other girls that Sara, who took the door at that time, didn't recognize.

Hikari: "Hello!"

Tei: "Sara-chan!"

Jun: "Evening!"

Sara smiled. "Welcome!" she greeted.

"Ah! Sara-chan, let me introduce them to you, the other two members of Wakaba Girls!" Tei said eagerly when they all went in. "This is Saitou Sumire," she introduced the girl with long silky blonde hair and blue eyes. "She's actually a friend of Hikari's!" Then she laid a hand on the other girl's, the one with short black hair and glasses, shoulder. "And this is Okuda Nao!"

Sara bowed. "I'm Kazumiya Sara! It's nice to meet you!"

Sumire bowed. "It's nice to meet you too!"

Nao smiled a small smile. "Likewise."

Aira and Cecil introduced themselves to them later, and soon enough everyone was settled around the table. Ms. Yamanaka clapped her hands. "Is everyone here now?"

Yui: "No, Sakura-chan isn't here yet."

Mugi: "It's okay, she texted me that she was going to be la—"

Mugi was interrupted by the doorbell. Mio rose to get the door.

Mugi: "Never mind, it looks like she's here!"

Cecil leaned towards Azusa as everyone else went to talk amongst themselves. "Who's Sakura?"

Azusa: "Hm? She's Houkago Tea Time's second guitarist."

Cecil: "Eh? I thought that was you?"

Azusa laughed softly. "It's a long story," she said.

Mio came back with a tired-looking girl with slightly wavy back-length black hair and a slender build of average height. "Sorry, everyone," she apologized, "I missed my stop, so I ran all the way here."

They went ahead and had a toast of apple juice. Before they decided to do that, Sawako had proposed a toast with champagne, but that wasn't an option; Sumire, Nao, Sara, Aira, Tei, Hikari, and Cecil weren't of legal age to drink alcohol.

Everyone: "Cheers!"

It was in the middle of eating the huge food course when everyone decided that each of the three bands should tell a story and Aira asked Sakura. Sakura assumed a dreamy expression and tugged on Ritsu. "Ritsu-chan! Your cute juniors are interested in me!"

Ritsu laughed. "You have such a happy expression… and stop tugging on me."

Mio smiled. "It wasn't anything too special. You could say we just… found her."

Everyone leaned in to listen, eager to hear the story from Houkago Tea Time.

* * *

><p>Ritsu: "You know, they were saying there's this amazing guitarist our age that just enrolled into this college. She's moving into our dorm, too!"<p>

Yui: "Ohhh. Really?"

Ritsu nodded. "I heard her talent was better than a lot of pros!"

Mio: "I never heard anything like this. Aren't you just making that up?"

Ritsu crossed her arms and grinned. "Wouldn't it be amazing if that were true?"

Yui pouted. "Ehhhh? So it's not true at all? That's boring!"

Mugi was merely smiling at the conversation.

Mio smiled. "Besides, if there was someone like that, we probably would've heard about it right away, considering we are in the Light Music Club, after all."

They were all walking back to the dorm when they saw a confused-looking girl walking closer to them, apparently not even aware that they were in the way. The group parted as they all watched her curiously, then she tripped and landed face-first on the ground.

Ritsu: "Faceplant?"

Mugi and Yui immediately knelt down to help the girl up.

Yui: "Are you okay?"

Mugi: "Hang in there!"

The girl looked up at them. "I'm okay," she said with closed eyes. "This happens all the time."

Mio: (All the time?)

Ritsu: (Someone worse than Yui!)

* * *

><p>Everyone laughed, Sakura fidgeting but smiling all the same.<p>

Sara: "What happened then?"

Ritsu continued the story. "So we treated her to pizza…"

* * *

><p>"Sorry for the trouble," the girl said. "My name is Kimura Sakura, please take care of me," she introduced herself, bowing down.<p>

Ritsu: (Take care?) "E-eh? Sure! I'm Tainaka Ritsu. This is Akiyama Mio, Kotobuki Tsuugi, and Hirasawa Yui."

Yui: "Hello!"

Mugi looked concerned. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked.

Sakura nodded. "Yes. As I said, it happens all the time."

Ritsu: "And here I thought there was no way there could be someone clumsier than Yui."

Yui: "Ricchan, that's mean!"

Mio sighed knowingly. "So, Kimura-san. What were you doing? You looked confused before you tripped…?" she was going to ask, but Sakura wasn't paying attention; she was staring at Yui.

Yui blinked at her curiously. "Is there something on my face, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura's eyes twinkled, although her face remained expressionless as she dropped the crumpled remains of a drinking straw's wrapper. Yui looked at it curiously. Mio and Ritsu were looking at Sakura with a confused expression, while Mugi was smiling.

Using her drinking straw, Sakura let a drop of the soda drip down onto the wrapper, causing it to expand and Yui to gasp loudly, impressed.

Ritsu: "She sure goes at her own pace, doesn't she?"

Sakura looked back to Mio. "S-so," Mio asked again, "what were you doing earlier, Kimura-san?" Sakura looked confused for a moment, then took Mio's wrapper without a word.

"That's incredible, Sakura-chan!" Yui exclaimed. "Do it again!" Sakura obliged, putting down the wrapper in front of Yui once more. She dropped some droplets of soda on it once more, and it expanded, Yui going "Woooaah!" excitedly.

Sakura looked back to Mio. "I think I was looking for my dorm," she explained.

Mio: (You think?)

Ritsu: (The dorm? You ended up in college grounds?)

* * *

><p>There were more laughs this time around. "It turned out that the dorm Sakura was looking for was ours, too, so we ended up hanging out a lot," Ritsu said with a grin.<p>

Jun: "So what about that amazing guitarist you were talking about?"

"Well, we did say it wasn't even a rumor that was flying around," Mio started.

"But it turned out there was some truth to it," Mugi continued, "although it took us a long time before we found out, even after Sakura-chan joined the Light Music Club."

"Yeah, yeah!" Yui chimed in. "She's really clumsy and trips on air occasionally; she can't understand any musical terms; she spaces out a lot; she gets confused too easily and anything can distract her!" Sakura fidgeted, smiling a small smile.

Azusa: "Yui-senpai, you're talking about yourself!"

Yui: "What!"

Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>The truth was there in Yui's words, though. In fact, Sakura might just trump over Yui in clumsiness and airheaded dopey-ness points. Unlike Yui, though, she was no glutton, and she didn't share Yui's innocent charm.<p>

Once while she was walking with and talking to Sachi, a member of HTT's so-called "rival band" OnNa Gumi, Sakura suddenly fell silent and when she saw a squirrel. She was lost in her own world, despite Sachi calling for her to come back. And then she bumped into a tree.

One time she entered Yui's and Akira's (another member of OnNa Gumi) class before she realized she was in the wrong building.

There was also one time when she almost went to class in her pajamas before Megumi, another resident of the dorm, stopped her.

Once as they were walking towards a park, a group of kids accidentally tossed a ball their way, close to Sakura. Sakura tossed the ball back to them, or at least attempted to do so, as she slipped; the ball flew up but incredibly was kicked back to the kids as it fell to one of Sakura's feet.

"How does one live life like that?" Ritsu commented that time.

Mugi: "Hang in there, Sakura-chan!"

* * *

><p>Yui: "It wasn't until we put a guitar in her hands and gave her a mic when we found out her big secret."<p>

Sakura laughed softly and awkwardly. "It's not like I was hiding it."

* * *

><p>It had been at least two months since Sakura had joined the Light Music Club. As was the usual, OnNa Gumi and Houkago Tea Time were in the clubroom, along with Sakura, chatting during a break from their practices.<p>

"So let me get this straight," Akira was saying, "Why did you even join the club when you can't play anything?" she asked Sakura. "Just an interest in music?" The thing was, since Sakura had joined the Light Music Club, she had only been trying instruments (and putting them in danger in the process). So far she had unsuccessfully tried bass, keyboard, drums, and even music production on the computer.

Sakura stared at her for a moment before answering. "I do can play something," she said expressionlessly.

Ritsu: "Oho! This is unexpected! I wanna hear it!"

Yui perked up in excitement. "Wah! Really? What can you play, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura tilted her head as though she was thinking, then turned it towards Yui's guitar.

Mugi blinked curiously. "Guitar?"

Sakura nodded. "Can I?"

"Sur—" Yui began, then she remembered Sakura's previous experience with the other instruments. With the bass, she broke the thickest string; with the drums her sticks went flying. The keyboard and computer were pretty unharmed. Yui gulped, then faced Akira. "Akira-chan, let her borrow your guitar," she said with a nervous smile.

Akira took her black guitar and held it protectively. "N-no way! Let her borrow yours!" she protested. Ayame, another member of OnNa Gumi, smirked at her.

Yui pouted. "Come on! It's just for a bit!"

Akira: "No way! Absolutely no way!"

Kana, the ever age-conscious club president, spoke up. "We have this extra guitar, actually, so you could use it instead," she said as she handed it to Sakura. "Be careful, okay?"

Sakura nodded. She slung the guitar on, then seemed to remember something, although it took her three heartbeats to remember what it was. "Ah," she suddenly said. "Should I sing, too? Can I use a mic?"

Ayame: "We can all hear you just fine; I don't think you're going to need a mic."

"You'll be singing, too?" Mugi asked eagerly.

Sakura nodded, then fell silent for a moment before she started playing. She surprised everyone by skillfully and perfectly playing the beginning part of HTT's "Fuwa Fuwa Time," but for some reason, she stopped right as she opened her mouth to sing the lyrics, then fell silent.

Ritsu looked at her curiously. "What? Did you forget the lyrics?"

Sakura closed her eyes and shook her head. The audience looked at each other, confused. Their attention snapped back to Sakura when she went "Ah!" though. "It's almost Christmas, isn't it?" she muttered, before starting up another song. "I'm going to play 'Merry Christmas without You'," Sakura said a few notes before the vocals started.

"Merry Christmas without You" was no rock song, but somehow Sakura adapted the calm yet jolly song perfectly to guitar and sang the vocals as beautifully as it was done in the original song.

Everyone, whose image of Sakura had been of a clumsy and well, incompetent, girl, was struck into silence by the performance. Sakura stared back at them with equal silence when she finished, her expression looking like nothing unusual happened at all.

When everyone started clapping, that expression didn't change.

Mugi was beaming with sparkles as she clapped her hands. "That was amazing, Sakura-chan!"

Yui dashed closer to Sakura and grabbed her hands. "You were that rumored amazing guitarist, Sakura-chan! Why didn't you tell us!"

"Huh?" Mio faced Ritsu. "I thought there was no such rumor at all."

Ritsu grabbed her chin with her fingers thoughtfully. "Then you mean… the rumor I made up came true after all?" She smirked, and faced Mio. "That's kinda creepy, isn't it?"

Mio gave a small gasp and stepped back. "N-no way! It was just a coincidence!"

* * *

><p>Mugi giggled. "After that event, Yui-chan got inspired to get better at guitar, didn't she?"<p>

Yui crossed her arms proudly and nodded. "I couldn't just accept defeat, after all!"

Ritsu: "But no one was challenging you, Yui."

Hikari giggled. "We had sort of a similar experience at the beginning of the school year," she said when everyone turned to her. She then proceeded to tell of how Sara's unnatural talent that frightened her and Cecil. Aira was used to it, while Tei was impressed, but somehow unfazed.

Sara: "You're exaggerating it, Hikari!"

"She's just like Ui-senpai," Nao commented.

Ui: "I-I'm not that amazing, Nao-chan!"

Mugi looked eager. "That's incredible, Sara-chan! I'd love to hear you play!"

Jun: "Yeah, yeah!"

Sara: "Ah, but I didn't bring any instruments."

Tei: "Then why don't you just sing, Sara-chan?"

Yui nodded. "Yeah! You should sing instead, Sara-chan!" She faced Azusa, but was talking to everyone in the room. "Sara-chan and everybody else—ah, they named their band Coccoro—they were really amazing in the cultural festival!"

Aira: "Oh! You saw us?"

Yui giggled. "Of course! I wanted to see the Light Music Club I was going to be with before I start teaching in Sakura High!"

Hikari looked at her. "Wait, Yui-senpai."

Yui: "What is it?"

Hikari: "You're going to be a teacher?"

Yui: "Yeah! Is there something wrong?"

Hikari laughed awkwardly. "No… not really—"

Tei chimed in. "That doesn't fit your image at all Yui-chan!"

Yui: "Yui-cha—"

Everybody laughed. "I still can't see you as a teacher myself, Yui-senpai," Azusa said between laughs.

Ritsu: "It doesn't fit you at all!"

"Hey! That's mean! I'm going to be a great teacher!" Yui said. "I'm going to be just like Sawa-chan!"

Sawako: "Me?"

More laughs. Then Yui gasped. "Wait! This wasn't about me! We were going to make Sara sing!"

Mio smile at Sara. "Will you, Sara?"

Sara fidgeted. "W-well, it's kinda embarrassing."

Aira: "Come on, you know you want to sing a song."

Sara sighed, smiling. "What should I sing, then?"

Tei: "Why don't you sing the song that's the namesake for our band?"

"Coccoro?" Sara asked. Tei nodded. "Alright then." There was a moment of silence before she started singing the gentle yet joyful song for everyone. When she finished, the room was still in a stunned silence. The members of Coccoro were smiling, though. Sara started blushing, then everyone clapped their hands.

Mugi: "That was amazing, Sara-chan!"

Ritsu: "M-mugi! Stop crying!"

Tei: "Oh yeah! It was also Sara's birthday back on the 21th!"

After birthday greetings, everyone decided it was time that Wakaba Girls shared their story, and when Wakaba Girls finished, they were finally done with the huge amount of delicious dishes.

Ritsu: "All right! Time for the awaited gift exchange!"

Everyone agreed with an "Ohh!" then brought out their gifts. Yui started singing and the gifts were juggled around until she stopped singing. The results:

Yui got Jun's gift, a huge box of donuts that she squealed happily at.

Mio got Tei's gift, a huge spider model that had her screaming.

Ritsu got Mio's gift, a white headband that she tried on with a smile.

Mugi got Sumire's gift, a bracelet that she tearfully swore to treasure.

Azusa got Yui's gift, a pair of cute gloves that she thanked her beloved senior for.

Ui got Azusa's gift, a guitar pick with a turtle on it that she couldn't decide on whether she should use It or not because of how precious it was.

Jun got Hikari's gift, a new volume of a manga Jun coincidentally had been reading and wanting.

Sumire got Cecil's gift, a cute pink bonnet.

Nao got Aira's gift, a small box of good chocolates.

Sawako got Nao's gift, a thumb drive that she may or may not use for mysterious purposes.

Sakura got Mugi's gift, a cute flowery scarf that she swore to cherish forever as she wrapped it around her neck.

Sara got Sakura's gift; a light blue ribbon that everyone forced her to tie her hair with. She obliged with an embarrassed blush, and tied a perfect-looking ponytail. Hikari's birthday gift to her was a necklace with a small pretty-looking jewel with an amber hue. Sara accepted awkwardly because of how expensive it looked. Tei's birthday gift to her was a huge doll of a bunny; Tei said that Sara needed more stuff in her room, "so here's another bunny." Aira's and Cecil's gift to her was a white mic that Sara absolutely loved and thanked them with so much joy it was unsettling.

Aira got Sara's gift; a pair of cute hair pins that Sara insisted Aira on wearing, who also put on an embarrassed blush as she put them on; they successfully made her look like the girl she wanted to be, although it did come with good-natured giggles and teasings from certain people.

Cecil got Sawako's gift; a box from which popped up a bird; it would've surprised and frightened someone like Mio, but Cecil silently stared at it for a few heartbeats before hugging it, calling it "cute."

Hikari got Ritsu's gift, a small box filled with tiny moving fake insects that had her freeze in place as color drained out of her.

Tei got Ui's gift, a pair of cute bunny earmuffs that she hugged Ui for.

* * *

><p>After gift-giving, Sawako called for everyone. "Everyone, I have an announcement to make," she said. Everyone gathered to listen. "Everyone here, well, except for Sakura-chan, has been my students." Sawako smiled. "I loved the time we had together, but after this school year, I'm going to stop being a teacher."<p>

Sawako had already told HTT about this, but everyone else started asking her why.

Yui: "Sawa-chan decided to stop teaching because she's now going to be HTT's manager."

Mio smiled. "It may not be such a good idea, though, since we're planning to take it slow."

Sawako: "That's perfectly fine; you girls have always taken it slow, but it's always been fun."

Ritsu raised a cup of juice. "Alright! Before we finish everything, let's have one last toast for Sawa-chan!"

Everybody else raised their glasses; "Cheers!"

While everyone was drinking, Sawako decided to announce another thing. "Oh, this may come as a surprise, but I have something else to say."

"What is it?" Ritsu asked her before continuing to drink.

Sawako: "I'm getting married."

While Mugi, Ui, Sakura, Sara and Tei congratulated Sawako, the rest looked almost shocked. Ritsu and Hikari did great-looking spit-takes.

* * *

><p>It was an hour away from midnight when the party finished and everyone left the house, Sara and Ui staying behind to help clean up, Aira electing to do the same.<p>

With some thanks from Mio and Ritsu, they all finally left, and Ui wave goodbye as she separated from them by the gate.

Aira stretched. "That was a lot of fun!" she exclaimed. "I'm completely beat, though."

Sara giggled. "The clips really look cute on you," she commented.

Aira blushed, then looked at Sara smiling at her, then looked back away, embarrassed. "T-thanks." Then she tapped the pair of red clips. "I really like them," she said with a grin.

Sara tilted her head as she looked at Aira. "Aira, where's your scarf?"

"Huh? Oh. I dunno. I probably lost it." Aira shrugged.

Sara sighed knowingly, then moved closer, taking off part of her scarf. Aira looked at her curiously as Sara gently wrapped that part of the scarf around her neck. Sara smiled at her. "It's cold, Aira."

Aira blushed. Then she smiled. "Not cold anymore," she replied, patting the pink scarf.

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I don't own Aria or Macross Frontier.<p>

Just a note, Sakura shares a surname with one of Yui's classmates, Kimura Fumie, one of the "Namayake Girls" that you saw during the first season telling Yui to go ahead and practice for the concert. She hardly did anything during the second season, but you'll recognize her for the pink flower pins and the twintails. If you ask me, she's the cutest character to ever happen in K-ON, and since I think that, you could probably expect her to appear somewhere in any of my works.

"Merry Christmas without You" is the 7th track of the Macross F Christmas album, "cosmic cuune". "Coccoro" is a track from Aria the Natural; it's the song Athena sings in the second season of the series.

Speaking of Athena and Sakura, Sakura is a blatant clone of Athena.

RIP Kawai Eri and Kawakami Tomoko.

I do have a story about Azusa's decision to leave HTT; I think I'll write it someday, I just don't know when. To comfort you, just know that there are no hard feelings about Azusa's decision or Sakura being HTT's new second guitarist.

With all that out of the way, Merry Christmas! If you look at Sara's profile, her birthday is December 21, which was yesterday. I really wanted to post this chapter yesterday because of that, but it turned out to be a lot longer than I had planned for it to be. I'm totally pushing that Aira/Sara ship, aren't I? (Look at that, I'm even shipping my own characters, pffft.) I don't actually celebrate Christmas, but I'd be lying if I said that Christmas mood wasn't any bit contagious. I love the Christmas season; everyone's in a good mood, and it creates opportunities many cute and heartwarming stories. The Christmas lights all look really cute; it's like a ground-level plain of colorful stars at night! Anyway, let's stop that before I spam you with embarrassing remarks. I hope this chapter was fun enough so that it wasn't too long for you. The next chapter should be the new school year; don't be surprised if I take a break from this fic next week before I start on that new school year. Have fun on your Christmas, and have a Happy New Year, too! Thank you for being with me this year!

Fic trivia: The bedroom in Mio's and Ritsu's house only has one bed.

* * *

><p>Mio spotted a black scarf with red outlines lying on the sofa when she entered the living room. "Hm? Wasn't this Aira's?" She was going to head outside to see if the two were still there, then stopped when she saw them. Mio smiled as she watched them walk away in a shared scarf.<p>

Ritsu joined her, smiling. "They sure remind you of us, huh?"

Mio laughed softly. "It's a wonderful Christmas Eve."


	13. Episode 13: A New School Year!

Keion!

Episode 13: A New School Year!

* * *

><p>Last year of junior high, a few years ago~<p>

The teacher was taking attendance smoothly with everyone present until he came across… "Jordan-san," he called. "Cecirru Jordan-san?" He looked to the seat by the window to see that she wasn't there. "Hm," he sighed through pursed lips. "She was here during homeroom…

"Class rep," he faced Sara, "could you look for her?"

Sara nodded as she rose. "Yes, sir."

It was amusingly cliché, but Sara found her on the rooftop. With that though running through her head, she giggled as she neared the foreigner, who seemed to be in a daze as she looked at the clear blue sky. "Jordan-san," she called.

The foreigner twitched, gasping softly before facing her. "Kazumiya-san?"

"Is there a problem, Jordan-san?" Sara smiled as she leaned next to her. The foreigner just looked away. "You know, you came to school, so you should at least show up during classes."

The foreigner was still looking away. "Why concern yourself over me? Is it just because you're the class representative?"

Sara tilted her head. "What's wrong?"

She seemed to blush then. "Be… because everyone must think I'm weird… sort of."

"How so?" Sara asked. The foreigner didn't answer. Sara smiled. "Should I sing for you?"

The foreigner's head snapped to Sara's direction, her face curious. "Huh?"

Sara laughed softly. She started humming a gentle and soft tune, the winds blowing through the rooftops as though they were flowing gently with the song. The foreigner was looking at Sara curiously with a small blush before she decided to just lean back, close her eyes, and enjoy the beautiful tune. Unheeded, a smile formed on her lips.

Then the humming stopped. Before the foreigner could open her eyes, a finger touched her lips, and she jolted back, her face red as she faced Sara. "Wha-wha—"

Sara smiled at her. "You should smile more. It's a pretty smile; I just had to touch it."

The foreigner couldn't find the words to say, so she just kept blushing.

Sara giggled, and they spent a few moments in silence together, looking up at the sky.

"Cecirru," Sara suddenly called. The foreigner's eyes popped open, and she faced the class rep, whose expression was thoughtful. "Ceirru… no, it's Cecil." She faced Cecil, beaming. "Cecil. Cecil. Ce~cil."

Cecil started blushing again. "Y-yes?"

Sara smiled at her. "It's a nice name. Can I call you 'Cecil' from now on?"

It took a few silent heartbeats before Cecil looked away, her face red, softly muttering something.

Sara: "Hm?"

"Sara." Cecil looked at Sara, still blushing. "Then I'll… also call you by your first name."

Sara smiled. "Okay."

* * *

><p>After the long cold winter, it was finally spring. Today was the date the entrance exam's results were to be released. Everyone else was here for the same reason, and she could hear different girls cheering as they found that they got in. Yuka twirled her hair, exhaled a huge sigh, then looked up at the board.<p>

She found her name. "Ah!" she remarked. "I got in."

"Yuka-chan!" a familiar voice called, along with running footsteps. Yuka looked at the girl with light brown hair as she finally caught up to her, panting for breath. "Did you get in?" she asked between pants.

Yuka beamed. "I got in, Yumi-chan!" she exclaimed, grabbing Yumi's hands as she giggled. "Did you get in, Yumi-chan?"

Yumi: "Well… I wonder."

Yuka: "You haven't checked yet?"

Yumi grinned. "I'm checking it no—I'm in!"

Yuka squealed in delight. "That's great!" she said, and then both of them were jumping around.

A girl with short red hair was staring at them before she turned to look at the board. After a second, "I'm there," she said.

* * *

><p>Tei had called everyone, saying that they should all walk to school together on the first day. Cecil huffed, and pouted. She was the only one here. True, she was early, but she at least expected the one who wanted to do this to be here first. She sighed. Well, Tei was still Tei, after all. She probably fell asleep or somethi—<p>

"I've been here all along, Cecirru," a creepy voice resembling Tei's whispered from behind Cecil.

Cecil yelped in surprise. "Did you come here this early just so you could do that!" she accused.

Tei grinned. "Of course!"

Cecil huffed. "You never change."

Tei stared at Cecil, smiling as she examined all around her. "You seem to have changed quite some bit, Cecirru," she said slyly.

Cecil: "Wha—"

"What are you doing, Tei?" Hikari appeared.

Tei smirked at Hikari. "Hika-chan hasn't changed at all," she stated, not-too-subtly looking at her chest.

Hikari caught her gaze. "Are you looking for a fight this early in the morning!" she yelled, covering her chest with her arms.

Tei giggled, then put a hand on Hikari's head.

Hikari: "THAT'S IT, YOU'RE DEAD."

"Everyone seems so energetic this morning," a smiling Aira said, Sara beside her.

Cecil: "Aira-san, Sara-san! Good morning."

Aira waved. "Yo!" she greeted.

"Good morning!" Sara greeted. "These two never change," she commented with a knowing smile as she watched Hikari chasing Tei.

Aira: "Come on! We'll be late!"

Hikari was soon stopped by Aira by being picked up with her collar. Afterwards, they all headed to school. The cherry blossoms were all in full bloom, the pink petals drifting slowly in the gentle and cool wind. Tei caught one in the air and stuck it to Cecil's forehead with her finger, Sara brushing off a petal from Aira's uniform before she noticed another on Hikari's hair, picking that off.

It was the start of their 2nd year in high school, a new spring. Another year for Coccoro!

* * *

><p>Looking through class assignments, Aira, Tei, and Hikari were in Class 2-2, while Sara and Cecil were in 2-3.<p>

They were just about to leave when they ran into Yuka, now also attending their school.

Yuka: "Onee-chan!"

Sara: "Yuka!"

Aira: "Ohhh! So you got in?"

Tei: "The uniform looks good on you!"

Yuka giggled softly, fidgeting. "D-do I?"

They chatted for a bit until the bell rang and a small girl who introduced herself as Sawatari Yumi called for Yuka. They waved goodbyes and headed to their respective classrooms.

* * *

><p>Aira: "Woah, so you really are a teacher here now."<p>

They were heading towards their classrooms when they ran into Yui—er, Ms. Hirasawa. She was wearing formal clothing; in her arms was a black folder.

Ms. Hirasawa threw a peace sign, a broad smile on her face. "I will be the Light Music Club's supervisor from now on!" Aira stared at her, while Hikari and Tei covered their trembling mouths with their hands to hide their giggles.

Cecil looked at her expressionlessly. "You really don't give out a teacher image, Hirasawa-senpai."

Hikari: "Nope, you don't look like a teacher at all."

Tei: "I hope we're in for a fun year, Yui-chan!"

Ms. Hirasawa: "Yui-cha—Sensei! It's sensei! Call me sensei!"

Sara laughed. "Now, now. Let's do our best this year, Hirasawa-sensei!"

Ms. Hirasawa faced Sara, her eyes sparkling. "Sara-chan!" A hug. "Let's do our best!"

* * *

><p>Finally, after school!<p>

Yuka was leaning back on her chair, looking up at the ceiling, lost in thought. Yumi was smiling as she looked at her friend rocking her chair.

Yumi: (If I called out loudly right now, I'm pretty sure shed topple over.)

Yumi giggled silently in her mind.

Yumi: (I know. I know her well.)

Yuka started humming.

"Have you decided on what club to join, Yuka-chan?" Yumi called her in a very soft voice, almost a whisper.

Yuka yelped, then toppled over.

"H-huh! What!" Yuka started saying in a panic before she realized it was just Yumi. "Geez, Yumi. You scared me."

Yumi laughed. "Sorry, sorry. So, have you decided on what club to join?"

Yuka closed her eyes thoughtfully. Then she opened them. "I'd like to try a music club like onee-chan, but I have to go home early so I don't think I'd have time for a club," she explained.

Yumi: "Hmmm."

Yuka gasped, then held her arms out. "I-it's not because my sister's forcing it on me!" she panickingly explained. "I insisted to do it so she could enjoy her high school life more!"

Yumi smiled. "I'm so jealous," she said. "You're such a sweet sister, Yuka-chan!"

"E-eh!" Yuka started blushing. "N-no! It's nothing!"

Yumi: "Then at least come with me while I check out the clubs?"

Yuka beamed. "Sure!" she replied as she rose.

Yumi: "Ah."

Yuka froze. "What is it?"

Yumi bowed apologetically. "Sorry!" she suddenly apologized.

Yuka: "Eh? What for?"

Yumi: "I asked you of something like that when you just said you have to go home early—"

Yuka gasped loudly, interrupting Yumi. "Ahhhhh! I forgot!" she exclaimed, then darted for the door. "Sorry, Yumi-chan! Have fun looking for a club!" she said before she dashed away.

It took a few moments of her mouth agape before Yumi closed it and scratched her head. "Who do I ask to check out the clubs with me, then?" she thought out loud.

Just then, she noticed that it was just her and girl with short red hair left in the class. That girl rose up, then faced Yumi, as though only now noticing that she was there.

Yumi: "Ah! Hey! Do you want to check out the clubs wit—"

"Sure," the red-haired girl said, her tone deadpan, although her lips might have had the tiniest sign of a smile.

Yumi grinned. "I'm Sawatari Yumi!"

The red-haired girl nodded. "Amagi Chiaki."

* * *

><p>The hallways were buzzing with the activity of clubs recruiting members, advertising and passing handouts. "Man, look at all this competition," Aira commented.<p>

Hikari punched a fist into the air. "We won't lose to these larger clubs!"

Cecil, who seemed pumped up for recruiting, nodded, and punched a fist into the air as well.

"Here are the handouts," Sara handed a packet to everyone.

Aira: "Woah, these are a lot."

Sara: "I had a bit too much fun making them last night."

Cecil took one, and read it out loud. "Music, tea, and cake. We're always looking to have fun in the Light Music Club." Cecil looked up at them, silent. "We're not a café," she finally said after a few seconds.

Hikari: "But it's… pretty accurate."

Aira crossed her arms. "No good, huh?"

Cecil: "No, it's actually fine."

Sara: "What else do we need?"

Hikari: "More… impact?"

Aira: "Huh? Where's Tei?"

"I'm right here!" Tei appeared from behind Aira, who almost jumped in surprise. "If it's impact we need, I know how to get it!" she exclaimed.

A hand grabbed Cecil's shoulder from behind. "Yeeek!" Cecil gasped.

"Hirasawa-sensei!" Sara called. Yui—Ms. Hirasawa winked, a thumb up.

A moment later, in the music room.

Aira: "Wait, what?"

Hikari put her hands on her hips. "Why are we in animal costumes?"

Aira was in a dog suit, she didn't look too fond of the idea. Sara was in a cat suit; she didn't seem to mind it, but she said something about the heat. Cecil was in a pig suit; she didn't take to it kindly, she was trembling. Tei was in a horse suit, posing. Hikari was in a chicken suit that was too big for her; she wasn't brightening up to the idea.

Yu—MS. HIRASAWA blinked innocently, smiling "It's a Light Music Club tradition—oof!" Cecil tossed the pig's head at her.

"WHY A PIG?" Cecil yelled in English.

Sara took off the cat suit's head. "I can definitely see the impact, but these costumes are too hot."

Aira: "That's what you're concerned about?"

Hikari: "Like I said, why animals in the first place? If we're going to have to wear costumes, lets go with something more fun!"

"I like the way you think, Hikari-chan!" Yui said, then she dashed into the storage, bringing out a whole set of costumes. "Sawa-chan gave me these for the Light Music Club to use!" she said cheerfully.

Cecil: "Wear them yourself!"

"Why were we wearing costumes in the first place again?" That's what Aira said, but everyone except Cecil was already flocking the costumes, picking the ones they like. "HEY!"

Sara found the magical girl costume Sawako made her wear before, eagerly trying it on once more. "Hirasawa-sensei, how do I look?" she asked the teacher, twirling.

Ms. Hirasawa's eyes twinkled. "You look perfect, Sara-chan!"

Hikari smirked as she looked at Sara. "Well, Sara-chan really is a magical girl, after all," she said in a gothic-styled jester costume.

Ms. Hirasawa: "Really?"

Hikari: "Don't reply in a tone that sounds like it's actually possible."

Tei, wearing a maid costume, neared the dumbfounded Cecil who was watching them. Tei twirled. "What do you think Cecirru?"

Cecil: "No!"

Tei in a yukata!

Cecil: "Absolutely not!"

Bunny girl Tei!

Cecil: "T-that might be okay…"

Hikari: "Cecil's gone insane!"

Aira: "Come back! Don't leave me in the side of sanity by myself!"

Ms. Hirasawa giggled. "This is fun, isn't it?"

"SEIZON SENRYAKU," Hikari suddenly yelled in a magical girl costume, a penguin hat on her head.

"It's so chaotic. I hope you guys haven't forgotten what we're doing?" Aira sighed, putting a palm to her face. "This is no different from when we were with Sawa-chan."

A while later, everyone somehow decided to agree on a shrine maiden costume to get it over with.

It was normal to see high school students out in the courtyard advertising their club, but when shrine maidens did it, it felt, for some reason, very weird. Reactions of other students passing by them varied from interest to small laughs as they went all over, telling everyone that came across them to join the Light Music Club and passing out handouts.

Aira and Cecil went along. Cecil felt more embarrassed than she would admit, but she did want new members. Sara seemed to have gotten into the spirit, as did Hikari, but none of them were as eager as Tei.

Tei drifted off from the group when she saw girl with short red hair walking with a girl just an inch taller than Hikari. "Someone seems troubled!" Tei commented as she neared the red-haired girl. "But happy for the companionship she was offered!" Tei threw a thumb-up at the smaller girl. "You made a girl happy! Good job!"

The small girl looked undeniably confused. The red-haired girl, on the other hand, looked unbothered and apathetic. Somehow, that's not what Tei saw; what she was seeing an unmistakable look of surprise on the red-haired girl.

Tei smiled at her, then Hikari pulled at one of her tails. "Hey Tei, don't scare away potential members," she scolded.

"Is something wrong?" Sara called. Upon checking that there wasn't, she faced the two freshmen with a smile. "We're the Light Music Club," she said, "If you're interested, please come to the music storage room on the third floor." Sara gave them a handout.

The red-haired girl nodded, and Tei leapt towards her. "Hmmm? I sense curiosity!" she exclaimed before Hikari pulled at her again.

"Come on, let's go," Sara said. She smiled at the two freshmen, "Bye now," and left with Tei and Hikari, waving as they walked away.

"We'll be expecting you!" Tei called at the two freshmen.

* * *

><p>The hallways were buzzing with the activity of clubs recruiting members, advertising and passing handouts. Each club had a different way of recruiting, but handouts seemed to be an unsaid requirement for everyone. Eager as she was, Yumi had taken every one handed out to her and checked out every club she came across.<p>

The Kendo Club's leader was the airheaded Makinami Mai. Although, it was her junior, Misato, who pretty much took the role, as she was the one doing the club introductions. Then she asked someone to try and challenge Mai, which a girl named Eiri answered. She seemed pretty confident of her skill, and so did several of her friends. She lost the moment she attacked with a strike to her helmet. She removed it, bowed down to Mai, thanking her. Mai giggled, and motioned for Eiri to hold out her hand. She dropped a knight shogi piece on it, confusing Eiri.

The Photography Club; its new president was a girl named Tamayura Nono. "A photo can contain a lot of mysteries. Like turning anything into something special the moment its picture is taken. Or connecting the hearts of the person on the photo and the one taking it," she said. "There are also times when photos of cute lights are taken, and you feel excited and experience a gentle feeling. When you look at them, you feel relieved." She smiled at them. "These are lovely mysteries."

There was the Culture Club, a club for those interested in the cultures of foreign countries. There was also the Writing Club that Yumi thought Chiaki would join. There were also the Occult, Tea, Archery, Track clubs and many, many more.

"I wonder if we missed any clubs?" Yumi asked, mostly to herself. Then she looked at Chiaki, stretching. "I'm going for the Fashion Club. You?"

Chiaki shook her head. "None."

Yumi: "Eh? You're not joining any?"

Chiaki shook her head again. "No, I meant I haven't decided," she replied, still in the same deadpan voice. Then she looked at Yumi. "Sorry."

Yumi laughed awkwardly. "N-no, it's alright!"

Chiaki's face remained expressionless. Yumi scratched her cheek, concerned and confused at the same time. Then Chiaki sighed, startling Yumi.

Yumi: (M-maybe she didn't want to come with me after all?)

And then a… shrine maiden? "Poof!" Suddenly, a shrine maiden appeared from out of nowhere. She had twintails and a curious and eager expression on her face, one that looked quite familiar to Yumi, but she only thought that at the back of her mind, as it was mostly occupied by the surprise the shrine maiden, who was looking at Chiaki, whose face had what seemed to be like surprise as well.

"Someone seems troubled!" the shrine maiden claimed. Then she grinned. "But happy for the companionship she was offered!" she said, hands on her hips. She jabbed a thumb-up at Yumi. "You made a girl happy! Good job!"

Yumi: (Wha—wha—)

Chiaki's face seemed surprised and confused as well, as subtle as it was. There was also a tiny blush on it that Yumi didn't catch, so confused by everything as she was.

Then a shrine maiden with glasses came from behind the twin-tailed shrine maiden. "Hey Tei, don't scare away potential members," she scolded the twin-tailed shrine maiden, pulling at one of her tails.

"Is something wrong?" A shrine maiden with gold eyes and black hair followed after them. Upon checking that there wasn't, she faced Yumi and Chiaki with a smile. "We're the Light Music Club," she said.

Yumi: (Music?)

The golden-eyed shrine maiden handed them a handout. "If you're interested, please come to the music storage room on the third floor." Nodding, Chiaki took it.

The shrine maiden called Tei neared Chiaki again. "Hmmm? I sense curiosity!" she said before the glassed shrine maiden pulled her back again.

"Come on, let's go," the golden-eyed shrine maiden told them. They waved at Chiaki and Yumi as they walked away.

"We'll be expecting you!" the one named Tei called.

It was a few moments of stunned silence before it was miraculously broken by Chiaki, of all people, that Yumi almost fell. "E-everything," she said.

Yumi: "Wh-what?"

Chiaki seemed to actually blush, then. "Everything she said was true," she finished, referring to Tei.

Yumi sighed, shook her head, and gently slapped her cheeks to clear her mind. "Oh, her?" Then she gasped loudly. "Wait! Her! I know her!" Chiaki looked at her as she furiously dug into her bag to whip out a fashion magazine. "Tei, right?" she said, flipping through pages. Then she showed one of the models on the pages. "It's her! My favorite model!" she exclaimed, getting excited.

Chiaki was feeling a gentle happiness as Yumi started squealing.

Written on the handout was that the Light Music Club's only band, Coccoro, would have a Freshman Welcoming Concert the next day.

* * *

><p>Unnecessary disclaimer: I don't own Mawaru Penguindrum or anything referenced above.<p>

After a not-so-short hiatus, I'm finally back writing again! I don't know if I'll be able to keep up my pace of one chapter a week, but I know I'll try my best. Finally, the new school year has come! You know, after writing a lot of long chapters, this actually feels kinda short. I do feel that a chapter's length shouldn't matter; I should just write it however long I feel it needs to be, so don't be surprised if future chapters turn out long. Hirasawa-sensei is actually pretty fun to write, but unfortunately I didn't get to use that to its full potential, although I can assure you I will keep trying. Anyway, I hope you had fun in this chapter! There will be a new member next chapter, so please look forward to it!

P.S.: I'm also working on new and updated character profiles, including the new characters and some of the side characters I hope to give larger parts in the future.


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